The Chaos Report
by Doctor Burrito
Summary: The story of The Liar, a side character in The Reporter's Saga. Follows His account of Chaos' rise to power and some of the events behind the Scholar's and Cosmos Reports. Narrated between the events of The Scholar's Report and its sequel.
1. Chapter 1

_**LOCATION: Peninsula of Power, World B.**_

_**OCCAISION: One Week Prior to Cycle 14.**_

I am The Liar. I am the last and final member of Obsidian. I am the sixth of six men who set out to change the world around them. Or perhaps I am not? Who can say anymore. The Scholar has changed so much, since first we met. His mind has warped in a way my own never could. I fear his disenchantment with the world will extend far beyond the dream, and we will all pay for having failed to realize this.

The Scholar wanted Final Heaven. At least, that was what he said back then. To tear down the tyrants who ruled over us, and remake the world as one where men would choose for themselves their leaders. A world of freedom, where reason and logic dictated, and madness were pushed out and shunned. A trillion stars a God, and no more Angels. Rather, we were all to be exalted and made equal and free by his plan. That is, that is how it all began.

"Final Heaven," he said.

"That old crack-pot theory?" The Wanderer laughed.

"It's not crack-pot. It is an effective and governing principle of Heaven's social structure. Six persons can change everything, at the cost of one."

"How'd that work out for the Dawn Warriors?" asked The Messenger.

"The less said, the better." The Scholar admitted. "But that doesn't mean it has to fail for us! Final Heaven can work. Think about it. We've been working for the Gods all this time, and has any one of them really seemed worthy of the crown they wear?"

"You're a shrewd man, Scholar," The Chronicler stated, frowning, "to judge The Gods. If you're not careful, you may find yourself condemned."

"And that is _exactly_ what I mean. Why should we live in fear of voicing our minds? Because The Gods are afraid of us. Something about us scares them, and so they do what they can to keep us afraid."

"Okay, ah'll bite. Wha' exactly ahre The Gods' so afrai' of?"

"I don't know," The Scholar told The Engineer. "But I know how we can know."

"Oh, this will end well," The Wanderer jeered.

"Matoya's Eye. With it, we can know the answer to any question we ask. If we get our hands on Matoya's Eye, we can know what frightens the Gods so, find it, and strike them down."

"And where are we supposed to _find_ this eye?"

"Gentlemen, since joining Obsidian, have any of you had reason to doubt me? Have I ever once said something without first thinking it through?"

"Fair enough. Tell us then, wha' be ahr course?"

"How many of you are familiar with the Goddess Etro? She's sort of a Goddess of amnesty, and good old Matoya has found safety with Her."

"Isn't Matoya an enemy of state?" The Chronicler asked.

"Indeed. Speaking with her would be considered treasonous, were it not for one small detail."

"And that is?" I asked, suddenly very wary of the whole situation.

"We have a contract with Divine Etro. Not your usual Dissidia, but something has come up, and She wants us to select a champion for Her to sort the problem out. Pack your bags, boys, we're heading in direction of Pulse."

And with those words our fates were all sealed. Obsidian changed gears from merely cashing in on the hubris of Gods and demons to planning their overthrow. For the sake of the freedom of all, you see. And oh, how fulfilling that work was to be! How much hope, how much promise, how much reason to believe we had in those days!

Indeed, the glorious sensation of those days is now only rivaled by my bitterness and hatred for the five men who I once believed were my brothers. I imagine they're all just as disillusioned and disenchanted as I by now. But as long as they follow The Scholar with their blind loyalty, we ever will be enemies.

Our time with Etro passed without incident. That is, I went on thinking that it did. This must have been something like five years ago now. I knew not at the time how important the encounter was. But since the events at The Palace of Order I have opened my eyes. I wonder if he was planning, even then, on using her? I may never know, but I'll be sure to ask before I kill him.

The dispute Etro wished to settle was a matter so petty that, to be honest, I felt She was overpaying us. As far as I recall, it was a feud between Her and Her sister, Lindzei, over the fate of the soul of one Barthandelus. Lindzei insisted he be permitted to Heaven, and Etro wanted to damn him.

In any case, the woman chosen to settle the dispute was one Jihl Nabaat. The Scholar enjoyed the idea that she had faithfully served this man until one surprise death. He was likely inebriated with his newfound lust for the blood of The Gods. How things would have gone for her I can't say, as I made a choice that day that was . . . ill advised, looking back.

On the way to deliver the name to Divine Etro, I ran into a young woman. She had strawberry hair and a cheerful, perky nature. She was going to meet up with her husband, she said. I asked if I could detain her momentarily, to ask a question or two, and she acquiesced.

"Have you been in the service of Divine Etro long?" I asked, a scheme hatching within me already.

"Well, yes. I mean, I didn't always know I was, but yeah, I've done some work for Her and Pulse."

"Really? Fascinating. Does your work involve one . . . _Barthandelus_ in any way?"

Her face paled, and she gave me a wary look. Then she asked, half whispering, "Where did you hear that name?"

"So it _did_ have to do with him!" I exclaim, winking at her. "What might your name be?"

She was off balance completely. No idea at all where I was going with anything, and lost to boot. I couldn't help but enjoy that. She looked rather fetching when confused, and I got off on exerting my mental prowess over others in those days. Time was of the essence, so I asked again, "Your name, what is it, if I may ask?"

"S-Serah." She stuttered. "Serah Farron."

"Beautiful," I said, taking her hand and kissing it, "I shall never forget the name of such a charming and helpful young lady," and then, smiling, I walked quickly by her. I turned the corner, then jogged off to the quarters of the Goddess Etro.

Prior to arriving, I made the choice that would change all our futures. One that I felt was half a prank, but one also motivated by a feeling so sudden, but so strong that I could not describe it. While I, like the others, loathed the Gods, I despised our practice of selling men's souls to their slavery. It made us into the very things we hated. So I took the name, Serah Farron, and wrote it in the place of Jihl Nabaat. And that I did to leave fate in the hands of the individual, and not in the reigns of Gods and their pretenders.

Etro was a perplexing individual, and likely one of the reasons we began to hate Gods as much as we did. It was Her absolute egomania that struck me as most repulsive. Oh, certainly, lesser men would be crushed by Her and Her actions and words and ways, but I? I saw right through Her. All the eternal wailing and sobbing and lamenting was simply unbecoming of a Death Goddess. And ultimately, it was just plain vexing.

When at last I managed to get a word in between the shrieking and fainting, I announced myself. Not, obviously, by name, but by the title I had taken since joining Obsidian. "Divine Etro. I'm The Doctor, representative of Obsidian. You requested our services in settling a dispute with one Lindzei, correct?"

More wailing at the mention of Lindzei. Gods, but I can't begin to describe how much that was irritating. It's funny, because, looking back, it really wasn't that important. To be honest, I rather regret how much I let little things distract me in those days. Perhaps if I'd paid more attention to the bigger picture, rather than focus every irrelevant detail, I'd have better foreseen the situation in which we all shall soon stand.

Etro calmed Herself long enough for me to, rather grudgingly, hand her the paper on which I had written the name of this new champion. Etro looked at the page a moment, then back to me. She did not seem to believe Her eyes. I bowed at Her second glance, hoping the woman would just _say_ something already.

"You are certain this is the choice you want to make?"

"Trust me, madam, I'm The Doctor. I believe I speak for all of us in Obsidian when I say we know what we're doing."

"Then this is the champion."

"Indeed, Your Divinity."

She began to tear up again, and I took my leave. At the time I believed that was that, and that the situation was completely resolved. No one would ever know, nor ever needed to. At least, that's what I had believed. Unfortunately, a different fate was dreamt for me than the one I myself imagined. Even know I do not know how my one choice could possibly have had so great an impact on us all.

In fact, it was a long and winding road to that discovery. When the axe fell upon my time with Obsidian, I was more or less oblivious. I won't bore with the details of our acquisition of Matoya's Eye. I'm under the impression someone else will be making a record of that. But that cursed artifact was the root of all our troubles. For when we gazed into Matoya's Eye, we were stripped of our illusions, and while I gained my sanity at that time, The Scholar lost his forever.

The Eye of Matoya was an unimposing rock. A lump of crystal, roughly the size of a hume's eye, it had no spectacular shine, nor mystic aura. In fact, with the whole of crystals floating about the Heavens, I'd never have honestly pegged this particular rock as anything special. But special it was, and indeed, an object more fearsome than any I've ever encountered.

"This is it, then?" The Chronicler asked, sliding a finger across its smooth, blank surface.

"Yes," The Scholar whispered, distracted by the artifact. "This is Matoya's Eye."

"Well then," The Messenger said, somewhat urgently, "Let's have a look, shall we? Gods know when they'll find out we have this."

"Aye," The Engineer called, "Les' 'ave it done with an' now be wastin' time, ey?"

"What do we ask it?" I inquired, suddenly giving voice to the thought we had all avoided before this. We honestly had no real clue what to ask this magic crystal ball.

"Isn't it obvious? How could you be so blind?" The Scholar said, his face lighting up like a child's as he lifted The Eye. "Show us . . . _the truth._"

A flash of light filled the room, and then all went dark. For a moment I wondered if I had died again, only to find my stomach spinning, as the room slowly lit up, revealing an endless expanse, as though one long, eternal puddle. And in this shallow water lay bodies innumerable. As we looked about, we began to recognize the bodies, here a loved one, there an enemy, each one as still as the grave.

The vision shifted slightly, and showed the expanse of Heaven beneath the bodies in the water, and a lush, vivid world far above them. And though no words were spoken, we could not deny the feeling that one world was far more real than the other. Suddenly, the water gave way beneath us, and we sank down into Heaven. When we landed on the golden streets and clouded plains, figures of great and terrible light began to tower above us, their hands extending through the watery sky, beyond the sleepy figures, and to a place we could not at first see.

Then the vision followed those golden hands to a woman, burning with a dark fire, battling a beast atop a throne. Which of the two was the more horrifying, I cannot say, for quickly the vision turned back to us, as the luminous giants turned their fury on us, trying to push us further and further downward.

As we succumbed to their force, the vision shifted to people waking up and falling asleep. Trillions of people in beds, waking and sleeping, one after another. And in the middle of this room of persons sleeping and waking, the vision showed my hand erasing the name written on the paper for Etro, and the new name I put in its place.

And at that, the vision promptly ended, with The Scholar slamming Matoya's Eye on the table. Though all of us were breathing heavily, a silence filled the room for several minutes thereafter. The Scholar's knuckles whitened around the crystal in his hand. Were it not some eldritch artifact, I'd worry he'd crush it between his hands.

"Deceiver," he snarled, suddenly, his voice freezing my stomach.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't you GIVE ME THAT!" he roared, backhanding me.

"You're _mad!_" I whined, nursing my jaw.

"Am I? Then explain to me what I saw! You betrayed us. You changed the name of our choice to one of your choosing. _WHY!_"

"Why indeed?" I ask, daring to challenge him. "Have you proof I did this thing?"

"You did it! We all have just now seen it!"

"In a vision, Scholar. One riddled with symbols and hidden meanings. You claim this is the one thing we should take at face? Why?"

"Etro Herself informed me of your acts. She commended our choice of Serah Farron. A name I have never heard, yet by the look on your face, I say you have!"

"Look at you," I say, glaring at him, "look at the rage in your eyes. What angers you, Scholar? That I acted alone? That I betrayed our group in so doing? Or that I challenged your authority? You are not God. You are an angel, just as I. Yet here you are, furious that I chose my own destiny, and gave the same chance to others, fighting the nebulous counsel of those who would control fate.

"You are mad because I did exactly what you claim you want to do. The only difference is you were the victim, and not The Gods. If we don't change this, here and now, you will twist and warp beyond all recognition. You will fight The Gods until you become one. Then, then we shall see what you are truly made of."

"Leave. Now." The Scholar hissed.

"What? You're expelling me? You have this authority? And what do _you_ say?" I shouted at the others, all of whom were averting their gaze. Seeing their lack of courage, I turned again to The Scholar, to meet his eyes.

"GET. OUT. OF. MY. SIGHT." He growled, advancing on me.

"I have shown you the errors of your way, and this is how you repay me? I am your friend, Scholar."

"You are a Liar, and I will tolerate your presence no further!"

And the rest, as they say, is history. From that day forward I became The Liar, cast out for deceiving my brothers. Ironic, isn't it? What should've been the greatest revelation to The Scholar was accused of being deceit, and I, who should have been there to usher in a glorious age of freedom, became his greatest enemy.

Indeed, from that day forward I was consumed with hatred for The Scholar, and I suppose it began to twist me and change my way. But because of this falling out, I found my way to the presence of one Cid Lufaine, and ultimately, into the employ of Chaos. And so began my journey to this place, where I would act as an agent of the Old Man and the Dragon, in their final scheme.


	2. Chapter 2 At Cid's Feet

**LOCATION: Peninsula of Power, World B**

**OCCASION: One Week Prior to Cycle 14**

Anger is a powerful emotion. Perhaps one of the mightiest we are capable of feeling. It fuels us when all others fail. It enables us to continue under the worst of circumstances. And with it, and by it, many marvelous things are accomplished. This story is not one of those. This is one of the fall of a miserable man, and how terrible and inconsistent his anger drove him to be.

After leaving Obsidian, I suppose you could say I spent a good month or two wandering the Heavens in an angry and drunken stupor. I recall vaguely that, during this time I fled a bar in one Star World after Kain Highwind and some woman showed up hunting Seymour Guado's festering spirit. After a long while, I found my way to the Sacred Nebula, and there was dragged, in my inebriated state, before Cid Lufaine Himself.

"Cidolfas Demen Bunansa," the robed God-King intoned, his voice not nearly so booming as the Gods' normally are, "I have heard much about you. Much about the service you provided The Gods in their campaigns. What reason does a hero like you have to be in so lowly a state?"

"Are you not All-Knowing? Know it, then."

"Do not aggravate your situation, angel. I am doing you a kindness by pretending you have free will. Now tell me, what has brought so low a man so proud?"

"Do you need me to say it? Then I will say it. You are everything that is wrong with Heaven. You are corrupt to the core, and your arrogance is the taint that poisons the other Gods. And it is this rotted, stinking _corpse_ of government that drove us to plan your downfall. Yes, Obsidian, even now, plans the death of your domain, and if at all possible, the removal of the cancer that has for too long been infected this place."

"Is that so? And never once did you consider coming and asking me to mend my ways?"

"Isn't it presumptuous to counsel God?"

"So you would murder Him instead! Do not entertain the illusion that you are in some way superior, or even equal to, me! You speak of Obsidian as though you were still a part of it. Yet here are you, drenched in spirits and divested of honor, reeking in my throne room! What happened to lead you here?"

"Because I betrayed them. We set out to destroy you for strangling men, and snuffing out liberty, yet The Scholar himself has become what we hated. He, too, indulges in the manipulation of the souls of men. As his arrogance rises to match yours, he ignores how much like you he becomes."

"And so you foiled him. We see how that went, hahaha. Is your determination to see free all men so great?"

"Our lives are ours alone. How can one such as yourself impose limits on us? Aren't you meant to be enlightened by all your power? We are not toys for your entertainment! I would not see men slave for the delight of Gods for all eternity. This is not the way things are meant to be!"

"Even when many angels strive to please their Gods of their own wills? You would rob them of that which gives them such happiness?"

"I would destroy the illusion of happiness in slavery! When the eyes of all are opened, they will know how little they truly enjoyed being your dogs!"

"Would they? If all illusions were torn away, would the masses truly rejoice? What if the truth is far more terrifying than the lie? What if reality hurt more than the fantasy? Would you still press onward?"

"If that is the price to pay. The truth is always better than lies, and liberty in chaos is greater than safety in order's slavery."

"Interesting words for one called The Liar- oh, yes, your new name reaches even my ears- especially those concerning Order and Chaos. Tell me, have you yet heard of Cosmos and Chaos?"

"Only that they are a prime example of your evils, two Gods warring forever, wreaking havoc across time and eternity for an unknown, and likely nonexistent purpose. What of them?"

"I am quite the fan of irony. Bound though I am to be fair- and yes, I am indeed fair, and it is only your incapacity to grasp all I do that renders you incapable of believing that- I enjoy the occasional sentence which is ironic, and to the sentenced seems woefully unfair. It brings you all closer to me, and helps you understand what I feel.

"So, you say you would indeed rend from the hands of the many their happiness to restore what you view as 'truth.' You loath the manipulation of others, and yet with your own statement you confess your desire to enforce your view of truth over the joy of others. You lift up a conflict greater than your understanding as a paradigm of my sins, when within it lies my very absolution. You are proud, and so I shall lay you low. You puff yourself up over some manner of freedom, and so I strip you of it. You dare believe you can do better than your God, and so I offer you the chance."

"I'm sorry, what? You've gone off rambling in Godspeak again."

"Cidolfas Demen Bunansa, from you I strip the mask, and lay bare the truth. You will see the truth you wish to feed us all. And I will offer you the chance to end the tyranny you hate with your mouth, yet love with your heart. The power of the Gods hinges upon Cosmos' continued victory in the Endless Cycle. I hereby sentence you to serve Chaos, Her mortal foe, as the angel responsible for choosing His champions. Yes, in the very capacity you rejected you will find the chance to change the status quo. Should Chaos conquer Cosmos, the tyranny of The Gods will end."

"Begging your pardon, but hasn't Chaos been winning thus far?"

"Cosmos has escaped final defeat by repeatedly ensuring another cycle begins. Your job will be to make certain that does not happen again. Now, do you accept the judgment of your God? Will you enter into the service of The High Cid?"

And then, because I am a moron, I said those two little words which forever changed my fate, and indeed, the fate of the world. Looking back, I must wonder whether it has all been for the best. Oh, to be sure, I'm free of World D now, and much closer to World A, but the stakes are much higher as a consequence. We're so close now, and so dangerously close to absolute defeat as well.

"I do," I said, sealing the fate of all, and beginning a pathway fraught with mistakes so dire I shudder at their memories.

Cid Lufaine raised a robed arm and extended it toward me, in a gesture of "shaking on it." So I put my hand out on His still covered palm, and we shook. As we did, flame erupted from his arm and wrapped itself around me. Some kind of symbolic God bullshit, no doubt. After that, He ordered several Seraphim to escort me to Hell, where I would be placed in Chaos' care.

I was also ordered to prepare a 'Chaos Report' for presentation following the execution of the plan. It was to contain nothing relating to The High Cid's involvement in the project beyond His having sanctioned a 13th Cycle. Little did I know then the purpose of this Report, which would be read on what they now call The Day of Cid, when The Scholar began to truly move His insane schemes along. But then, at that time I didn't really know The Scholar's plans, either.

All I cared about was the chance to wreak some serious havoc. That The Scholar later became Cosmos' minister in the affair was only an added bonus.


	3. Chapter 3 Another Deal, Another Devil

**LOCATION: Peninsula of Power, World B**

**OCCASION: Six Days Prior to Cycle 14**

Expression is the act of taking concepts that are felt or sensed and displaying them for others to likewise feel and enjoy. We express many things over the course of our afterlives, be that fear, joy, sorrow, pain, lust, or any of a number of less primal, more abstract concepts. It is the basis of communication, and the foundation of knowledge. Expression is a mechanical process that can be elevated to the level of art or sunk to the depths of vulgarity. In and of itself, it's just a fancy word for 'telling' and 'showing.'

When I was escorted into the throne room of Lord Chaos, I believe it would be best to say that my face was expressing abject horror. And with good reason. I was being taken to the lair of a God of Hell. Not merely an Archdemon, but a fully-fledged God of Evil and King of Darkness. At least, at that moment that was what I believed.

The truth was, I knew almost nothing about Cosmos and Chaos at the time. You might get the impression that a lot of people in World D DID know about them, but that was after the Day of Cid. In the days when I entered Chaos' service, little was known. The extent of my knowledge concerning them was what I had shared with Cid Lufaine- they were two Gods ordered by The High Cid to battle forever. Publicly, Cosmos had been winning these battles for some time, descending into Time's stream and raising heroes to defeat Chaos. I would not even know that they had privately been having these dissidiae had Chaos Himself not once so claimed to the host of Heaven.

I suppose I'm just good at guessing.

"Greetings, Liar!" Jeered Chaos from His throne, causing the various demons lounging in the room to burst into laughter. He silenced them with a wave of the hand, then, baring His fangs, said, "You must forgive them. We've been excited to have you here since learning of your coming. It's so rare that an Angel come down and walk the fires of Hell. I trust Cid treated you well enough?"

I was taken aback by this. Officially, I was coming here on my own, and The High Cid had nothing to do with my presence.

"Do not look so surprised. Here in Hell there are no secrets. Well, except the ones there are." The demons laughed again, until Chaos quieted them with a furious, fiery bid for silence. "This war was started by Cid Lufaine and Shinryu. You will yet learn more disturbing things. And I am here to tell you know that I have no interest in winning the thirteenth cycle. After all, that's what they all expect me to do, and what's the point of being Chaos if you follow expectations?"

"You don't intend to win? You're giving up already? I can see I've got my work cut out for me."

"HAW! I knew you Cids were a determined type. Oh, you will be most interesting, most interesting indeed. Welcome, then, Cidolfas Demen Bunansa! Liar! Please, make yourself at home. You won't be leaving any time soon!"

After another riot of laughter, Chaos moved from His throne to stand near me, doing so with a garish burst of flame, leaving behind a stench of brimstone as He did. Putting one of His arms around my shoulder, Chaos ushered me out of His throne room and into an adjoining chamber, conversing as we went.

"Do you know why I don't intend to win the thirteenth cycle?" Chaos asks me, His voice somewhere in the distance.

"Didn't you just say? Everybody expects you to win it, and, being Chaos, you want to live up to the name?"

"No. Well, yes, but that is hardly all. I am tired of this endless war. It's too, _predictable_, shall we say? I am bound to Cosmos, and I am bound by Cid. I want much, much more than this. I want freedom. And you, you my friend, you shall help me get it."

"I do not see how."

"If you _did_ see how, you would be me. Tell me, Liar, what would you do out of hatred? What if the people you loved most had betrayed you, and sold you for thirty gil? Would you rage for vengeance, conspire to find a way to make every last one of them receive his just desserts, or would you forgive them all? Could you forgive them all?"

I did not know it then, but Chaos' words were fraught with meaning. Regardless, I took them to heart, and have pondered them many times since. They are the words that hang upon my neck for all time, and I will carry them from this world to the next, should I ever make it there. Given the chance, what would you do, if you could take revenge on every last person who had ever wronged you?

Ah, but then, I suppose that's the price of rage. It blinds us to reason, and it eclipses any chance we have of truly analyzing our options. Rage, Greed, and Pride. These are the source of all our pains in this sad, long, tale. They are the root of my folly, and The Scholar's. They are what broke Cid Lufaine, and undoubtedly those who came before Him.

But I am straying from the narrative. Is this the place for an old man to ramble about the elements that broke his life into tiny pieces and put the lives of countless others in jeopardy, or merely the place to describe those events? Does it matter? Six days from now, I cannot imagine that it will. Soon we will be on to the next stage of our war, and when we arrive, who can say how it will end?

Returning to the tale, if I may, I asked Chaos concerning His expectations concerning me and my employment with Him. He smiled again as He said, "You will help me achieve my goal, and in return, you will discover the truth."

And that was that. I had my things brought in, and slept that night to the music of the tortured cries of those damned to wander Hell's frozen plains amidst the rains of fire and worse. Needless to say, it was something of a rough night.

A week passed, with me doing nothing more than studying quietly, until at last Chaos summoned me again. This time his throne room was devoid of any prying eyes, and in their place were books of all manner. I doubted rightly that I would ever open them.

"The time has come, Liar," Chaos said. "For us to begin planning our strike on those who have harmed me. And as such, we shall begin where the wound runs deepest. We will choose now a champion from my first conflict with Cosmos. Someone that, the mere sight of will hurt her. That is what I want."

"Your first conflict? Refresh my memory- that was the one where you narrowly lost with Sephiroth, and he went mad forever after, no?"

"Oh, you poor, misguided fool, is that what they say is the first? No, no. Sephiroth is a mite in comparison to this battle. An insignificant speck. And if he is a speck, you are less still. But I suspect you know more than this. The Scholar certainly does."

"The Scholar is privy to more than most of Heaven. His connections have not been my own for some time. And his tendency to keep secrets is alarming."

"Do you hate him?"

"With all my being; why do you ask?"

"Should you hate him?"

"I was cast out for keeping a secret. Now you tell me that he kept something like this a secret from the group? I'd more than hate him, could I think of a word that mighty."

"An interesting justification. My first conflict with Cosmos is one in which I participated . . . personally. Under the guise of one Garland, against Cosmos' champions. She took the form of one Princess Sarah during this battle. I wonder, how much can I explain to you without breaking your fragile mind?"

"Break me," I replied, "I'd rather be mad than live a lie."

"Not yet, no. It's too soon. You will see in time. You know Cosmos' chief retainer, I assume?"

"Sol, the Warrior of Light. I doubt I've ever seen anyone with a worse demeanor for the public eye than that man. What of him?"

"He is Her champion. Indeed, He is the thorn that ever stands in my side. He is the man She chose, and the man He chose, and the man They chose. Ah, but to bore you with stories of a time and place that no longer stand is not the point. This man, this _warrior of light_, is the greatest of threats. No other being in all of Heaven compares to him. Not that he's aware, but that's aside from the point.

"They love him. Cosmos loves him. As part of the plan, I want him gone. His removal will hurt Her. You have until the blood rains tomorrow to tell me which of all the fiends in Hell I can trust to make his destruction the most brutal, terrible, and heart-wrenchingly cruel experience possible."

"I do not need that long," I replied before Chaos could leave.

"Oh? How so?"

"Tell me, Chaos: From what little I understand, Cosmos and Cid Lufaine once did you a great deal of injustice, once left a wound deeper in you than any demon would care to admit. This plan, this forfeiture of the 13th Cycle, it is geared upon some 14th scenario, some moment after the end, where you will deal pain to all those who have ever harmed you, is it not? You want to make them _hurt_ the way they hurt you, correct?

"Then there is no need for me to wait, not even until the coming day, nor the coming hour. What image most hurts Cosmos? What man has most right to cut Her down, and fill Her with sorrow? Who most hates this man called the Warrior? _You do._ The man for this job is you, Chaos. That is who is angriest, and most violently set upon ending all the world's wrong. You. For you. Are. Chaos!"

Chaos stared at me a moment, His empty red eyes seeming to take everything in as He analyzed the proposal. At last, He asked, "Can hatred really be all there is to this, Liar?"

"Hatred is power, and anger is life," I answered. "These things, rage and fury, loathing and bloodlust, they are what allows a man to retain himself, and continue onward, even when the purest of motives would have failed. All things anger supports, and the lust for vengeance all evils justifies. Do you hate Cosmos? Do you hate The Warrior? Do you hate Cid Lufaine? Then go yourself to the middle of the battle, and stand atop their corpses, and revel in your victory."

"Ha! An interesting notion! What a strange suggestion! I, Chaos, go into the war? And tell me, Liar, what shall I put on the official declaration of war? Whose name shall I write?"

"Tell them Garland is coming. Is that not the name you fought Cosmos under? Tell them Garland will go to war."

Chaos stared a long while, then burst into laughter. The irony must have been too much for Him. Knowing what I now know, that the choice to send Garland to war was the beginning of all this, I can see that. At the time, though, I found it disturbing, to say the least. Chaos' madness was evident, even then. God alone can say what now passes in His mind. Our deal, nevertheless stands, even now. He will hold to it, and so, too, will I.

"I will help you," I said, deciding to try my own hand at scheming, "but I wish no less than that which you have asked. I will help you destroy Cosmos and all those who have wronged you, and in return, you help me destroy The Scholar."

"Very well! We have ourselves . . . a deal."


	4. Chapter 4 The Well of Souls

_**LOCATION: Peninsula of Power, World B.**_

_**OCCASION: Six Days prior to Cycle 14.**_

Sending the declaration of war was one of the most interesting things I had ever done. I could not, at the time, have been more enthused by the idea. Following that, I spent my time pouring over every last scrap of information Chaos had at His disposal. I didn't quite know who or what we would be choosing next, but I was determined to be prepared when the time came.

And, as expected, it did. I was seated, reading over a list of elemental fiends when Chaos emerged from the wall beside me. It was a little bothersome, his methods of travel, but I supposed I would survive with little real problem.

"So," He said, pacing as He did, "The time has come to assemble my army. I need nine warriors to aid me in this cycle. They must be a threat, and must ultimately fail. I need a team which does not function, but gives off the appearance of it. Can you manage that?"

"Absolutely," I lied, not at all confident that I could, "But first I need some more information. How does this Endless Cycle actually function? How does this work? I need to know."

"Ah ha! I was beginning to wonder if you would ask," Chaos said, clapping me on the back. "I am torn, you see, between how much I should tell you, and how much you can handle in your present state. Let us say that the Endless Cycle happens in a world beyond our own. A realm that is beyond even Heaven and Hell. One beyond The Void's reach. The wars occur there, and memory functions differently within. Once there, memories of here are as though dreams. Once here, memories of there are fleeting, and like words on the edge of one's tongue."

"How does one arrive in this world?"

"Ah, my friend, such a question I cannot presently answer you. Now, here is what I want your help with today: Though I, personally, will be there to strike fear and pain into Cosmos' heart, and lead the charge, I want you to help me pick several souls who will be enticed by the chance for power."

"Have you decided on a platform, then?"

"Oh, yes. Several, in fact. This will be the first attempt to win souls to the cause, and in the same swoop, it must attract one or two who will detract from the group."

"Very well, let's hear it, then."

"I am Chaos, and I wish to change the cruel fate laid upon me. All who join my ranks are offered this same chance."

"An interesting position. And you want me to find someone who will find the allure of changing fate too much, and do what?"

"Isn't that your job? As long as it ultimately disrupts the team's balance, what should I care?"

"Ah, well, glad to know you're taking an active interest, then."

"Ha-ha. Now get those names together, funny man, or you're worm food."

Chaos drops several dockets on my desk, as though asking me to read them. I put a hand atop for a moment, pondering whether or not I even should. At last, I come to my own decision.

"Dockets are The Scholar's forte. They are not personal, and leave entirely too much space for error. Now, Chaos, you have worked with almost every demon and scum to ever burn down here in Hell, so tell me, from your own experience, who are some of the men who could perhaps fit this bill?"

"No dockets? How unlike your master you are! I believe I may yet grow to like you, Liar! Now, as to your question, let us be on it, shall we?" Chaos lays a hand on my shoulder and, next thing I know, I'm hovering above a fountain of what appears to be mist. Chaos waves a hand above it, and several fragments seem to rise from the depths.

"What, what is this?"

"Behold! The Well of Souls! Herein lie the shattered remains of those who are destroyed even on a spiritual level. It is a fate worse even than condemnation to the Void. Herein lie the fragments of those who are foolish enough to stake their souls in battle."

"What has this to do with? Oh GODS, what is THAT?"

"Mateus," Chaos purrs to the remains of a face floating in the pool, "How are you, Mateus?"

A mouth passes near, and manages, "I have been . . . better. Is there a reason you call, Chaos?"

"Indeed, Mateus. Tell me, are you happy with your fate? Do you enjoy being a puddle, mingled with the remains of others?"

"Do I appear to be enjoying myself, Chaos?"

"Well said. Now tell me, Mateus . . . what would you do in rage? What would you do to change your fate? What would you do undo those who have wronged you, and to have your vengeance upon the world?"

Though he is but a scrap of skin with an eye, and a mouth floating nearby, I can tell that this Mateus is already considering Chaos' proposal. The eye tries to narrow, and the lips curl into a smile. Indeed, there is something primal about watching the flan try and raise itself to meet Chaos' offer.

"I . . . would do _**anything . . .**_"

"Anything? Enter, then, into the service of Chaos, and fight your fate. Will you do this?"

A hand emerged from the midst of body parts, and extended itself toward Chaos. Chaos clasped the hand and pulled Mateus upward. As he did, the emperor's body reformed itself, and, judging from the screams, it must have been a horribly painful experience. Indeed, when it was done, the man's body was still scarred from all the places his spirit had been broken.

Before the emperor could make a comment, though, Chaos had His hand around his throat, slamming him into the floor. Mateus' eyes bulged, nearly falling from his skull, as he kicked and struggled to break free from the grip of Chaos.

_**WELCOME,**_ Chaos roared, His voice echoing within my head, _**TO THE SERVICE OF YOUR GOD. ANYTHING LESS THAN SUCCESS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR? YOUR LOYALTY, AND YOUR SUCCESS, OR I WILL TEAR YOU APART MYSELF.**_

After a very heartfelt statement of loyalty, Mateus was released. The emperor rolled over and sputtered. To the sound of his painful cough Chaos ushered me away. Apparently the remained of Mateus' resurrection wasn't something I was supposed to see.

"Wait, didn't you say that you WANT him to betray you?" I asked suddenly, remembering the point in all of this.

"I do. But he won't be betraying me if he KNOWS I want him to."

"You've done surprisingly well by yourself here. Why, again, do you need me?"

"I don't. Cid Lufaine wants you here, though, so I intend to make use of you, yet. Worry not, little man. Your time will come."

It was statements like these that made me question Chaos' intentions. I wondered whether or not He intended for me much the same as for Mateus. To make me believe I was to do one thing, only to have me do another. Had I been a wiser man, I'd have given such a notion more thought. Blinded by my ambition, however, I did not pay it much heed.

"Well, then. Is this man alone enough to tear apart your forces?"

"Absolutely not. His is a personality more than a few find grating. He will need someone to join his side, be loyal to him, or give off the appearance of it, all while exuding a more . . . _pleasant_ persona. Otherwise I will grind him to pieces myself, just to kill time."

"Interesting. And do you have such a person in mind?"

"Perhaps. But I do not intend to give you all the answers, nor do I wish to do this job for myself. You will find the person who completes Mateus. For now, though, I must go. Oh, and while you ponder who will be Mateus' prop, think on our strategy. At the least I will help you in this. Let us see if great minds truly think alike, shall we?"

"Very well."

"Fail," He said, "And we may have to question how great your mind truly is. Or at least, what will be left of it when I finish."

"Comforting."

"Leave comfort behind; the crutches of the reality you thought you understood will soon become chains that bind your ability to see the truth."

"And what does that mean?"

"It means the world you knew was a lie. The sooner you realize that, the better."


	5. Chapter 5 Bodies Entwining

_**LOCATION: Peninsula of Power, World B**_

_**OCCASION:**_ _**6 Days Prior to Cycle 14.**_

Fear is a natural part of us. It rules over us, and guides more of our actions than we give it credit for. Fear of what we do not know becomes hatred, which gives us power. Derision is born when our hatred masks our fear with pride, and lashes out at that which we first feared. This is the reason we mock the beliefs of others, and why so many monsters fail to comprehend even the reason the many cling desperately to life.

The question I want to ask is this: if we fear what we do not know, and that fear leads us to violence and malevolence of one manner or another, how long will it last until we tear each other down? We do not know what lies beyond the vision of man. In World D's Heaven and Hell we found and elevated for ourselves Gods. From what I remember of World A, we had Gods there, too.

But World D was a reflection of our dreams about World A. So the Gods we feared in World D are a reflection of the ones we revered in World A. Yet in World D we knew them, and we walked among them. In World A they were distant, as memory serves, and there was much confusion on the subject of religion. One thing, above all, however, is more terrifying.

We knew, in World D, that Cid Lufaine was the God of the Gods of Gods, and therefore the alleged supreme Good in the universe. Here, in World B, I am already aware of the fact that this is not true of World A. Cid was just a man, among many. And now He is but a Moogle with phenomenal powers. Who, then, is the ultimate good in our home, World A? Who is the God of the Gods of Gods there?

Make no mistake, the existence of evil I have seen. Indeed, I have worked with it, and I have understood it. I have been intimate with the most terrifying man in any world, and I have known what true evil is. That evil exists here, and in all worlds, I do not doubt, not even for a moment. But then, if there is true evil, and a source of it, whence cometh good? Where does hope spring from, and where does it go?

As I gaze upon this wasted world, and all the ruins that line it, and consider the coming war that will be fought, only for the right to return to World A, and nothing more, I must consider this, too. We have fought so hard, all of us, on all sides of the line, to reach this point. What if the world up there is not as much as we have hoped? What if we return, only to find more hardship, and more strife?

Is there no God, in all the worlds, that can set these things right? Is there no ultimate source of happiness, and no final rest? Where do we go when we die? Is there One who gives us justice for our works, or are we all merely erased when we fall victim to man's common illness? Is there a reason that guides all things, and lays straight all our crooked paths, or will we forever be doomed to Chaos?

Look upon us! All this ruin, all this destruction, and all the pain and suffering that is yet to come. Who do we have to blame, if it be not we Cids? Nay, who do we have to blame, if not all ourselves? The pride of Life has at last begun to collapse in on itself, and for our selfishness, we will exterminate ourselves and be given to a fate far worse than death. Soon, now, so very soon.

And I am one of the chief to blame. I played so perfectly into Chaos' plan! I gave Him everything He wanted, and received nothing in return. Behold me now, abandoned to the fate I deserve. And all because I did everything exactly the way He wanted it done.

Chaos wanted a bolster for Mateus, one who would support Mateus in his ideas, and help him overthrow the group, all while planning to betray him as well, so that even the overthrow would fall in on itself, and I found him one with an ease that, looking back, should have been alarming. Not once did I question how simple the job was, from that moment, on to the end, it was simple, and I never seemed to notice it.

I sat one day in the castle's tavern, wherein the souls of alcoholics were tormented by being chained just out of reach of fountains of flowing alcohol as their palettes were dried with the fierce heat of a thousand suns, when a name came suddenly to my mind.

I had been conversing at the time with a demoness by the name of Echidna, concerning the horde of ambitious souls lying in Hell's clutches when I felt the need to ask about one I had read of the previous night.

"Ultimecia," I blurted, suddenly. "What do you know about Ultimecia?"

"Ultimecia?" Echidna asked, running a hand along her neck, as if to seduce me. "Well there's a name you weren't supposed to ask about just yet."

"What do you know about her?"

"She's a witch. A sorceress, in fact. You've heard of the spawn of the great Hynne?"

"The Skinless God? I've heard of Him."

"Ultimecia is the end result of Hynne's sin. She amassed the collective powers of all the sorceresses in her world, and attempted to crush all time together into one, single moment."

"Why would she do that?"

"Oh, my poor friend, don't you know yet? Then let me fill you in on a tiny little secret, hmm?"

My breath seemed to catch in my throat as Echidna spoke. Chaos had told me to discover the truth, and at this moment, I felt as though I were inescapably near to it. Like a moth to a flame, I leaned my head to Echidna for her to whisper this glorious truth in my ear.

When she spoke I heard not her voice, nor even the voice of a demon, but the crashing of a distant storm. Amidst that terrible din I was able to discern but one phrase, and it shook me to the core. The phrase was, "These things are an echo of the ones that have already transpired."

Shaken, I asked, "What was that? I'm sorry, I don't think I understood."

Echidna, as though she were repeating herself, said, "Why don't you ask Chaos? His experience is _personal_."

I stared at her for a moment, considering whether or not I should press the issue, but ultimately decided to gather more information about the original subject instead, that is, Ultimecia, "So, Ultimecia. How far along did she get in her plan?"

"Oh, well, she made it fairly far, actually. She ruled over the world, despite the best efforts of the humans to resist her. In the end, though, her mad desire to destroy all of time and survive alone was enough to undo her. In fact, you could say that Ultimecia's own hubris was what ultimately did her in. Every action she chose, every step she took, they only lead her closer to that final failure."

"Is that so? And where is this Ultimecia now?"

"I can't say. There are so many rotting here in Hell. How should I know. Now, mister Angel, why not come with me and see just how much more flexible we are on this side of The Void, hm?"

"That sounds wonderful," I said, not at all enthused, "let's indeed."

Ah, but what a fiasco that was! Ha, oh, the sex was fine, but I wasn't in mind to enjoy it. My thoughts were consumed with rage for the Scholar, and interest in this Ultimecia, and fear of what Chaos would do if I could not find the people to tear his group apart.

I find my preoccupation with the last part hilarious in hindsight, but then, I suppose I'm meant to only foreshadow why for now. I never was one for story-telling. Whatever the case, the sex was ruined by my attitude. Which is to say, it ended spectacularly, but there was nothing emotional in it at all. And when you've been dead for so long, you begin to cease to care for pleasure.

Indeed, pain, and the threat of death or obliteration, are what make us feel so completely alive. Perhaps that was why I didn't mind being used by these demons. I wanted to feel alive, and to rebel from the way things HAD to be in this place.

The following day I approached Chaos with my suggestion. He was, to say the least, ecstatic. So much so that he beheaded several blasphemers on the spot. I suppose I was lucky to have eaten nothing that day.

"Ultimecia?" Chaos repeated.

"It's only a hunch, but yes. A woman of such magical might would prove an asset to your forces, would she not? They say she nearly held control over Time itself before her demise, and, to boot, it was her own fault that things transpired the way they did."

"And how will she interact with Mateus?" Chaos asked, seating Himself on a throne made from the mangled, conscious corpses of genocides.

"Mateus, in your words, is a proud man, and one of much ambition. Ultimecia shares this with him, having once dominated nearly all her world as well. Mateus, as Emperor, was a brilliant politician, ruthless and cunning, to say the least. Many were the assassins sent by the nations of the world, and indeed by the Palamecians themselves, to off him. His capacity to outthink others is no small feat. As a statesman and a leader he is peerless."

"Then why don't we take up Vayne Solidor instead?"

"Vayne is crippled by his own belief that what he does is for the best," I answered, from personal experience.

"Are you, yourself, not the same, Liar?"

"I was the same. My time with The Scholar has broken me of such ideals. I want revenge, that Is all."

"Oh-ho! What happened to your lofty aim of tearing down all illusions and falsehoods, hmm? It would seem that, after so short a time in Hell already, you are beginning to lose your own."

"Whatever the case, Vayne's belief in doing right would be only detrimental to our efforts."

"Would it? Was he truly so righteous? The man murdered his own brothers for power, and though he alleged a desire to free humanity from the grip of the Occuria, and unify the races, he was only too happy to accept Occurian power along the way."

"All this he did while claiming it for the best of others. Vayne's interest in 'a greater good' creates a weakness in him. He can be talked down, and, moreover, of himself is but a man. He cannot compare to Mateus' power. Archadia, furthermore, had enemies who posed real threats, even at its peak. Palamecia, on the other hand, had but a handful of stragglers, and this before the gates of Hell were flung open to its aid."

"Very well. Mateus is the superior statesman, but how does Ultimecia play into things?"

"Ultimecia, operating under the guise of one Edea, won great political power as well, conquering the hearts of the very people who had once feared the Sorceresses. She, like Mateus, has an uncanny power of persuasion, in addition to her fierce ambition for power. The two will undoubtedly see each other as allies, and work together until the exact moment their alliance is at its strongest, thereafter tearing each other to pieces in attempts for their own gain.

"I see, that is a most . . . astute summation. Very well, it will be done. Come, then, let us be off."

"Where to?"

"Liar, you will see every fiend you choose brought forth from the eternal agony to which they were condemned, so that you know full well the price you are paying for your own revenge. Do I make myself clear? 'Where to'? We're going to the edge of Time itself, to pay a visit to what remains of Ultimecia."

"This sounds like it will be pleasant."

"Excruciatingly so."

Chaos took me to a place that was difficult to describe. It was as though I stood at the end of two plates, just inches from one another. One plate was Time, wherein dwelt the mortals who had yet to die, and the other was Eternity, the vast expanse of Heaven, Hell, and the Void. To see where Time stopped and Eternity began, was . . . almost the worst, most terrifying part of it. That is, until I saw what was caught between the plates.

There, crunched into a neat cube, her bones broken and her blood held in by the force of Time and Eternity trying to unite, were the remains of the still waking Ultimecia. Her every moment was undoubtedly one of the highest pain, as her body was continuously crushed by a pressure no man could ever hope to name.

"Your own greed magnified a thousand times, you learned a lesson so few have the privilege of ever learning," Chaos mocked, extending a hand toward the shuddering mass that was once the proud Witch-Queen of a world, "Ultimecia! Foolish woman, who dared to believe she could consume Time itself, now by Time are you yourself compressed! How do you feel?"

From within the mass came a burble of a response, which turned my stomach as I listened. "Why don't you tell me? I am an echo of you . . ."

"Well said! It is a shame you could not ever _hope_ to comprehend the way I feel. Your punishment is a mere shadow of mine. And when I say shadow, I mean the faintest, weakest, most miserable and pathetic attempt at a replication that one can conceive of. But enough of that! Tell me, Ultimecia _what would you do for rage? For vengeance, what would you do? Given the chance to change the course of time, and turn the hand of Fate, and spit in the Eye of God, what would you do?_"

Ultimecia's cubed slime began to vibrate and writhe with anger, and, with a voice that rasped and shuddered as her blood tried to bubble out of the cube, she shrieked, "I would scorch the worlds with my fury, I would bend the Gods before me, I would give my skin to skin those who have put me here! I would do _anything_ to get back what I had!"

Chaos rammed the wall of Eternity, and began to tear at it and allow Ultimecia to ooze into Hell. As she did, He roared, "Then ENTER into a COVENANT of service with your NEW GOD! Serve ME, and I shall GIVE you POWER!"

Eternity's wall burst aside and the remains of Ultimecia flooded into Hell, forming a brilliant puddle on the ground. Chaos asked her to accept, and, voicing her assent, He raised her up in a halo of fire to a choir of the damned.

"Why do you seek my power?" He inquired, giving her the chance to justify herself.

"Like insekts, like miserable, treacherous vermin, the remnants of the Hero Project creep from all ends of Time to slay me. Why? What did I do to them? The answer? Nothing. Because there is no reason, save it be KILL and BE KILLED."

"Then ENTER into the service of CHAOS!"


	6. Chapter 6 Golden Eye

_**LOCATION: PENINSULA OF POWER, WORLD B**_

_**OCCASION: SIX DAYS PRIOR TO CYCLE 14**_

Shame is an emotion drawn from many fountains. No matter who we are, be we God, Angel, Man, or something worse, we have all experienced this sentiment at least once in our lives. More often than not, it draws from our actions, things we do which are ill advised, which are foolish, or which are motivated by things that are less than noble.

Such is my state at this time. I have taken a torch to the hornet's nest, and a bomb to the viper's hole. What comes now is my doing. Oh, to be certain, many of us have had our part in this terrible scenario, and few are that stand blameless, but a shame wells up within me that I begin to wish there were a hell, for there would I cast myself, and be buried and hidden forever from the memory of my sins.

For I found a monster, pure and terrible in his evil, and I enabled him. I wondered just how much so along the way, but now, from my vantage point, I can see it for what it truly is. I empowered the most terrifying horror that has ever been known, and now his rage will spread across all worlds, and all times, and all possibilities. The plan is a perfect one, and even the actions of Omega could not truly foil it.

After raising Ultimecia and Mateus, I was filled with a pride that blinded. I was already slave to Chaos, though I did not realize it. I spent the week partying, in high Hellish fashion, dancing on the backs of those who had wasted their own lives destroying others. When the hangover ended, I found myself again taken with the task of destroying all that the righteous had built with their hypocrisy and lies.

Chaos had tasked me with finding some muscle for the actual team, since He wanted a viable threat, something to keep his juggernauts in check, on the field. So, understanding that nobody would know better what kind of messed up souls were floating about in Hell than those who lived there full time, I decided to chat with the new recruits.

The idea of talking with Ultimecia and Mateus was one that I did not exactly relish. I mean, while Echidna hadn't seemed all that bad, at least, not while taking the shape of a succubus, these two were certified monsters, and feared even in Hell. Nevertheless, I was a Cid, and felt myself untouchable. So off I went to chat with our darling little horrors and see how all was going for them and if they'd be so kind as to offer up the name of any monster more terrifying than themselves.

The pair of horrors were seated on a balcony of Chaos' castle, overlooking a river of blood flowing through a valley of broken bones, just after a light fall of flaming snow. They seemed to be dining and conversing as I approached, but soon quieted upon noticing my coming.

Ultimecia appeared to have once been a beautiful woman, her body shapely, her face striking, her eyes entrancing, but her hands and feet monstrous, and the wings from her back crippled and deformed. Mateus was perhaps a tad too feminine for my respects, reminding me a bit too much of Vayne, but I assumed the layers of make-up were to hide the scars where Firion had split his skull asunder.

While Ultimecia's gaze seemed one of analysis, Mateus' was undoubtedly one of absolute contempt. I didn't like that, not one bit. He seemed to be forgetting who it was that had come up with the idea of pulling his sorry ass out of the pool of filth into which it had been discarded. But I decided I'd be the better man and share a smile with him.

"Ultimecia, is it just me, or is something foul pervading the air?"

"Such disrespect, Mateus. You must be more reverent, something wicked this way comes."

"Good morning," I said, ignoring their mockery.

"Is it? Every day confined in Chaos' prison is another of torment, if you ask me," Mateus scoffed.

"Indeed, I tire of playing for His team. This will be what, the thirteenth time?"

"Now, now, Ultimecia. Spoilers, and all that."

"Oh, please. You mean to tell me he doesn't know?"

"See for yourself, darling."

"Is it true?" Ultimecia inquired, getting to her feet and drawing near me. "You really don't know what's going on here?"

"Absolutely not!" I spat, "I know full well what is happening. We are preparing to wage war on Lady Cosmos and overturn our fates. The nerve! Suggesting I don't know!"

"You really don't, then, hahaha."

"Bah. Fine, I'll play along with your little game. What's the secret I've been missing here? What is it that I'm so woefully unaware of?"

"Ah-ah!" Mateus said, rising as well, "You don't get something for nothing, now, do you Mr. Cid? No, no. If you want to know what the bigger picture is here, we're going to have to work out a deal, here."

"A deal? Is that so? What's to stop me from telling Chaos about this, and having Him extract this information from you?"

Ultimecia snorted, then broke into a girlish fit of laughter.

"You don't think you hold His leash, do you? Oh, no, dear Cid. Chaos controls you, not the other way around."

"Ah, now there are things you don't know, my friend."

"Puh-lease. You think a dirty-blooded cur like you could _possibly_ pull a fast one on me? No, no, no. Perhaps you think yourself the Manipulator, but I'm afraid you are quite the Subservient, my foolish little Cid. You are no different from the whores from which Chaos' latrine is made. You bow yourself before Him and when He says to relax, you-"

"Now, now, Mateus. What harsh words you've given! Such things are simply not fitting of our dear friend, the Cid. Like the whores of Chaos' latrine? Perish the thought! Rather, he is like the perverts, whose torment he himself will soon witness. A creature so wretched, so horrid, and despicable, so vile and horrific that to call him the shit that is encrusted beneath the nails of the toes of the likes of Milon and the Lich would be to do his blind madness an honor. He is unfit even to be in our presence."

"Pathetic Cid, still holding to his halo, and with it his fragile perception of self, of power, and the existence of good and evil. The existence of right and wrong. Oh, dear Cid, don't you know? History is written by the victors. And you, dear Cid, aren't one. There is nothing good or bad, these are concepts applied by Man. There is only power, and that you lack."

"Indeed, Mateus. We, ourselves, are lacking in power. Between you and I there isn't enough, shall we say, brute force, to intimidate Chaos into doing what we want. Besides, every great king requires curs to occupy the teeming masses."

"Too true, Ultimecia. Too true. So, again, let us make a deal here, foul Cid. You are aiding Chaos in His raising of an army to undo Cosmos, aren't you? What is your hope in all of this? What do you stand to benefit from all of this?"

"That which we offered to you, as well: the chance to change fate and bend it to your own desire."

"Is that so? How quaint. What we offer you is more, still. Do you love the Gods? I dare say you do not. You seem to be enjoying your stay in Hell. Would you change your fate? What if I could offer you mastery of it? Chaos offers us mere fish, but I have a plan for how we might wrest the pole, and the river, and the fish from their hands. Does this not interest you?"

"My ears are yours," I responded, honestly tempted by the offer. As I saw it, I was already in league with Cid Lufaine to betray Chaos to Him, and in league with Chaos to subvert the entire purpose of the war and arrange a coup d'etat of the most brilliant level. Now, if I entered into league with Mateus and Ultimecia to overthrow Chaos, which wasn't any more dangerous than working with Chaos to overthrow Cid, or acting on my own to subvert The Scholar had been, then perhaps I stood to bend all to my own purpose- to destroy The Scholar and achieve that which we had set out to do in the beginning- tear down the tyranny of The Gods.

"We will tell you what you are missing, and let you in on a cut of our profits, in exchange you will convince Chaos to acquire three persons for us."

"Which three persons?"

"Nobody of any great renown. Jecht of Zanarkand, a woman called The Cloud of Darkness, oh, and, Kefka Palazzo."

"K-k-kefka? I didn't know he counted as a person of no great renown!"

"Will you do this?"

"Ha. This and more."

"Then we are finished here for the time being. When you return from your voyage with Chaos, we will instruct you further."

"What voyage?"

"The one we were meant to inform you of. Chaos is waiting for you in the throne room. Come along, Ultimecia, I've grown bored of this conversation."

"Indeed. Something rather foul seems to have here arisen."

Some six minutes later I found myself in the throne room, Chaos standing with a bag by His feet, undoubtedly containing my possessions.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"Where indeed? Have you got a name for my muscle?"

"I've come to the conclusion that Kefka Palazzo would serve us well."

"Is that so? Kefka the God of Magic? He is . . . an anomaly."

"Fitting of Chaos, would you not agree?"

"Indeed! To the Pit of Perverts, then!"

As the wormhole opened and began to drag us in, I could not help but venture the question, "Why is it called the Pit of Perverts?"

"Simply putting it, it is a pit full of perverts," Chaos replied as we stepped out. His description could not have been more spot-on. It was, indeed, a pit, unfathomably deep, filled to the brim with what, apparently, had once been perverts.

"Behold!" Chaos roared as we descended, "the pikes of purification! Whereupon are impaled the necrophiliacs, those who lie with beasts, and all they who lay in ways forbidden by The Gods and do not repent.

"And again, BEHOLD! The rapists' mill! Wherein they who defile and rob the purity of others are ground to dust after being denied all pleasures, only to begin again! And before it lies the forge of adulterers, whose flames burn like the forbidden love of they who could not withhold!"

"Now hold on, Chaos. Adultery exists in Heaven. Why, then, is there a punishment for adulterers in Hell?"

"My dear friend, Heaven and Hell were once much more defined, but as The God of Gods of Gods loosens His grip, so, too, do the boundaries. Before He awakens, stranger things still shall you see."

"Awakens? Funny, He seemed perfectly awake to me."

"Does a sleeping man seem any different to a dreamer? Ah-ha! We are almost to the bottom. Look, there you can see the forest of pedophiles!"

"What odd looking trees. What does a forest have to do with pedophiles?"

"Let us draw nearer, shall we?"

And so we did. When we grew closer I saw that the trees themselves were merely poles of iron with spikes about them. What made them appear as though they were trees, though, was a sight to behold. The corpses of the pedophiles were lain at the bottom of the trees, food for the ravens, and their skins and organs were slowly stretched along the framework of the tree, tearing here and there, chewed by the spiders of the woods.

"Heed my words!" called a pale pedophile near to me, "In life I was Zorn, a jester of the queen of Alexandria! She sent us across the land, seeking for power. Along the way we discovered the legend of the summoners, and the process of extraction. I enjoyed it! Oh how I enjoyed it! How many little girls did I claim were summoners, just so I could flay their shrieking forms in the dungeons, and have my way with the still-warm remains! Fear, oh lost angel! For where you go worse than I shall you see!"

"Pay him no mind," Chaos said. "The pain drives them to madness, heightened by the crystal-clear memories of their sins. Not even I can say what is and is not true in his mouth."

"Oh lost angel! When you find my brother, Thorn, send him my pity!"

And with that, we descended further, until at last we landed at the bottom of the pit. It was pitch-black, and barren, save for a single head sticking from the ground. As we approached it, the head beckoned us with a shrill, then deep call.

"Who's THERE? Someone's THERE! Come HERE! Say HELLO to MEEEeeeeEEEE!"

"This is him?"

"Many were the punishments attempted. He enjoyed them all. The only thing in Hell we could find that would be remotely punishing was to isolate and fully restrain him."

"Why not just chuck him into The Void?"

"Because nobody knows whether he'd like that or not."

"Well then, he'll love this, won't he?"

"Who can say?"

Chaos and I drew near to Kefka's place on the floor of the pit of perverts, and Chaos at last illuminated the area enough to reveal that the ground was made of flesh, not dirt. Oddly enough, Kefka was encased in stone, depriving him the pleasure of pain, or any sensation, I suppose. Kefka's eyes seemed almost skinned over as he blinked at Chaos and the pale light in His hand.

"Garland, baby! Long time, no see! It's been so long since the last time you came down here! How'd that thing with Sarah work out? You ever tap that? BECAUSE I WOULD HAVE! Tapped it with a knife, and then an axe, and then an ochu, and then well, YOU know . . ."

"Kefka, do you know why I have come?"

"We're having a magnificent TEA party, right?"

"No, Kefka. We're here to make you a deal."

"A deal? I hope it's _Fu__**N**_."

"Kefka Palazzo, what would you do out of rage? What would you do, because of the hatred that burns in your veins? Would you challenge the Goddess of Fate, and turn back the Hand of God? Would you bend the worlds to your will? Would you raze the Heavens and flood the Circles of Hell to satisfy your lust for destruction? Would you ravage all that is pure and innocent and precious to slake your thirst for blood?"

"Oh, Gary, baby, do you even need to ask? I mean, c'mon, 'sme, remember? Kefka? I do this stuff."

"Then enter, now, into a covenant with your God! SUBMIT to the WILL of CHAOS!"

"Lemme think about that for a minute? Yeah, how about NO."

"No? NO? NO! Why not?" Chaos asked, genuinely puzzled by this first refusal.

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine here in this block. And much as I'd LOVE to go turn over some temples and sacrifices virgins and rend flesh and maim bodies and kill kill kill kill kill kill, I'm not interested in joining your team for just that."

"No? Then what DO you want?"

"trabrfd."

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch that."

"TERRA BRANFORD. Give me the chance at her, ONE MORE TIME, and I'll do ANYTHING, ANYTHING for you!"

"As you wish, Kefka."

"Well then, let's go!" Kefka said, suddenly rising from the rock into which he'd been sealed. That this surprised even Chaos is an understatement. What came afterward, however, was undoubtedly the most unnerving part of it all. "You know, though, this makes me **FEEL** like _SiNgInG!_"

"Wait, what?"

Kefka lurched over and began to arch himself in what could only be described as terrifyingly erotic positions as other perverts were loosed to provide the back-up.

"See reflections, on the water!" he crooned, his voice horrifically suited to singing, "more than darkness in the depths, see me surface in every shadow, on the wind I feel her breath!"

"Terra my, I found her weakness! Terra my, she'll do what I please! Terra my, no time for sweetness! But a bitter kiss will bring her TO HER KNEES!

The perverts crowded around Kefka, then hoisted him into the air as he bent backward, thrusting his chest forward, crooning, "You'll never know, how I watched you from the shadows as a child! You'll never know, how it feels to be the one who's left behind! You'll never know, the days, the nights, the tears, the tears I've cried! But now, now my time has come, and time, time is not on your side!"

The perverts dropped Kefka to the ground as demons emerged from the fleshy floor, ignited and luminescent, "See me move through smoke and mirrors, feel my presence in the crowd, other guys, they gather around her! If I had her, I _**wouldn't let her out**_!

"Terra my, not lace or leather!" Kefka sang, suddenly slipping a chain-noose about the neck of a succubus wearing a green wig, "Golden chains'll hold you to my spot!" He sang, drawing the succubus toward his gyrating pelvis, "Terra my, I'll show you forever! It'll take forever **to see what I've got**!"

The demons and perverts circled about Kefka, music somehow filling the air and approaching a climax of some sort, "You'll never know, how I watched you from the shadows when you were a child! You'll never know, how it feels to be so close, and be denied, it's a gold and honeyed trap, I've got for you tonight! Revenge, is a kiss, this time I won't miss, now I've got you in my sights! Terra's mine, mine, Terra's my, mine, all MINE!"

"I hope you're sure of this," Chaos said.

"As do I."


	7. Chapter 7 Slipping

_**LOCATION: PENINSULA OF POWER, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: SIX DAYS PRIOR TO CYCLE 14.**_

I must say that, in the very least, I am disturbed by what has begun to transpire. I arrived alone here in World B to prepare the world for its final battle. Recently, Shinryu arrived, bringing word of what has taken place there below. The Divine Dragon has stated that The Scholar began a war of His own after losing His body in World D. He took the girl I chose, Serah Farron, and warped her into a monster to do his bidding. Binding her to Omega, he has set World D ablaze.

All of this, unfortunately, has played out exactly as each player has imagined. Who can say which of us Would-Be Gods is the most in control? Shinryu seems pleased to be free of World D. He has compared it to having seven needles pulled and allowing a new world to come forth. His mind is one I cannot comprehend. But the fact that this Serah-Omega was able to slay Him worries me.

Of course Cid Lufaine will be free of the Dream soon, and when He is, how will He feel? Stripped of Absolute Virtue, He will be as vulnerable as the rest of us here will be. It will leave Him dangerously weak compared to Shinryuu, and the two will return to their Beauty and Beast arrangement, unless Cid recovers His body in World C.

And what of The Scholar? His Omega-Serah will strike down God, and wake all, bringing the masses to World C's stasis, while we war for their future here in World B. What then? What is his endgame? Does he intend to obtain Absolute Virtue in World C? Should he so do, we may yet be foiled.

But even worse is Chaos. His plan I know best now, and His worries me most. For I enabled Chaos to come as far as He soon will. I gave Him what He would need to straddle the world and tear it asunder. I thought Chaos wanted to challenge fate, and have His vengeance. How could I ever have foreseen the way things would become?

After freeing Kefka from his prison, and sending him to Chaos' castle, we spent the night on the Plains of Pain, where Chaos and I discussed the next move in this horrible plan of ours to overthrow all that was taken as real and firm.

"I have been thinking," Chaos said.

"Oh?"

"Kefka is an interesting choice, for his ruthlessness and incapacity to follow the rules, but we need further firepower still. And I wish to prepare for certain contingencies as well."

"I agree. I have been considering the matter, and I feel we ought to make a voyage to The Void. The Cloud of Darkness would suit well our ends, don't you agree?"

"The Cloud of Darkness . . . ? Now there's a one you do not often here others willingly choose to seek out. Yes, to the Void we shall go. But there are other things I wish to have done here, as well. Kefka and the Cloud of Darkness are excellent examples of how even a God may be undone. This is why I wish to have several . . . back-ups, if you will."

"Back-ups? How can such a thing be?"

"Even as I can become Garland, I have others through whom I have manifested over the years. These will we seek and bring to our cause."

"And if they are unwilling?"

"There is only an illusion of choice in this world. That is the problem. No one can defy Fate, save I. None can refuse the call I extend. And who can refuse himself, knowing that he, too, is Chaos?"

"Show me your cards, then. Who are these back-ups?"

"Two, for now, will serve my purposes. One is a man in Heaven called Vincent Valentine. The other is a boy here in Hell named Earl Tyrant, and his aid, Oscha."

"That's three."

"Is it? I only count two."

"Now, there's Valentine, Tyrant, and Oscha. That's three."

"Only to those bound by the rules."

"Whatever you say. Isn't it a bit odd to have a child in Hell?"

"Not this child. He was a very, very bad one."

"So these two-."

"Three."

"You just said there were only two, despite it appearing to be three."

"I just remembered another. He only used my name in his day, but that's still the contract. Fell to some chump called Brandt, but we'll need all the back-ups we can get."

"Fine, these back-ups. How do they figure into the rest of the team?"

"Oh, no, they don't figure in with the three we've picked up, nor with those to come after. These are a team B, if you will."

"A B-Team? And how many teams are there?"

"You and your numbers. What were you in Life, a mathematician?"

"A doctor, actually-."

"No, the number isn't important to you. Not yet. These will merely factor into a separate team that will participate in the cycle AFTER this one."

"Ah, so they're a part of the greater plan, then?"

"Indeed."

"Well then, what's our first move?"

"For now," Chaos said, suddenly encircling me, "you will sleep. Tomorrow we will dive into The Void, and from there, well, there's much to be done . . ."

I was bothered, at that time, by this dissonant action. Chaos, the most feared and terrifying demon in all of Hell, lying around me like some giant dog, encouraging me to dream sweetly and rest well. Indeed, over the course of my time with Him, I often found myself surprised by the tenderness that this lord of horror could display. Every once in awhile I would see flashes of the man He truly was, hints of the noble Son of God, and Hero of Cornelia. Rare glimpses would come, fleeting like the setting sun's light, of the man who enchanted Princess Sarah and convinced her to abandon all she had known for him.

And these only serve to frighten me further, to deepen the fear I feel for the coming conflict. For I know now what so few are willing to admit: That the greatest and most horrifying of all evils was once among the best of us. The Paragon is now the Pariah, and our Apex became our Nadir. And if a man as righteous as Garland can become as terrifying as Chaos, how much easier is it for the rest of us? Indeed, I worry that this was and is a central part of the message Chaos hoped to send me.

Sleep came for me, and with it oblivion's embrace. I dreamt no dreams, and time seemed not to pass, if time can be said to exist in World D. Chaos woke me, eventually, and we set off for The Rift. It's expanse was indescribable, and to see it was already enough to make one wish to avert his eyes. Even so, there was something about that great . . . _space_ that seemed attractive to me.

What was it about that great lacking of presence, that absolute absence, that I found so alluring? It was like a terrible emptiness, and with it, a calm assurance. Assurance that there was a place where Gods and Demons held no sway. A realm devoid of God, and devoid of the Devil. A world without them, where, in that vast, eternal solitude, one could be truly free.

And as I stared into The Void, it stared back at me, and reminded me of who had put the lust for such a place into me. My thoughts were carried to The Scholar, and his dream of a world where Gods, Demons, Angels, and Spirits were all equals, and none ruled above the other. The awe inspiring nothingness of The Void mocked me, flaunting itself as the realization of The Scholar's Final Heaven, and warning what lengths we might have to go to in order to obtain our wish.

But The Void, could it really have given what we wanted? The quest for freedom had corrupted The Scholar, making him into the very monsters he was fighting, and, unable to sway him, I had turned away. Branded a liar and a heretic, I abandoned my own ideals and entered into this enterprise, one of vengeance, and nothing more. God Himself employed me to betray His Son, and The Son of God wished me to betray The Father, and those who were their pawns wanted free of the hands moving the pieces on the board. I had loathed The Scholar's deceptions, and had wanted to strip illusion from the masses to set them free, and in so doing, was already well on my way to becoming the deceiver I had so loathed.

Yet there stood the Void, calling to me, and I dared not resist. Chaos and I advanced, and He, parting the barrier with His bare hands, allowed me to pass. The sensation was one I could not at all describe at first. It was neither suffocation nor breathing, it was neither oppressive nor comforting, yet pressure all the same. It was not so hot as Hell, indeed, the only thing I felt was a remarkable cold.

"Insignificant little realm," Chaos snorted, apparently unafraid, even of The Void. "The denizens of this place are divided into two, the wanderers, and the worriers. The wanderers are they who have lost themselves to The Void completely, and walk forever in its wastes, never able to find even themselves. The worriers are they who are consumed by their grief at this place, desiring even Hell over its haunted halls."

"And which of these does the Cloud of Darkness count as?"

"Oh, no, my poor creature. Just as there are saints who suffer nobly in Hell, having sold their souls that others might live, so, too, are there those who even The Void cannot conquer. The Cloud of Darkness is one such being. You intend to let loose a woman who is as intimate with this realm as a wife her husband. She is The Void's preacher, I suppose, desiring to spread the Gospel of Oblivion across the Heavens, and blanket all with its nothingness. Do you wish, still, to free her?"

"I did not come here just to chat with her."

"You say this now, and yet I wonder when you will begin to comprehend the gravity of your decisions. Let us go, it is not far, now."

Far, apparently, is a relative term for Chaos. For Him maybe it wasn't far, but for me, it felt like a marathon. When there is no actual distance to cover, nor time to pass, it becomes a bit difficult to describe how painfully dull and tiresome a walk can be. The Void, as it happens, proves to make even walking an agonizing task.

Inevitably we arrived at a place in that vast nothingness inhabited by three beings. Seated above the two was a man in red robes, whose face was obscured by The Void. Kneeling, and indeed caressing his feet, was a man in blue armor, and, resting her head in his armored lap was a naked woman, undoubtedly The Cloud of Darkness.

"Hail, Chaos, failure supreme!" The man in red called from his non-throne.

"Greetings, Enuo, fool of fools," Chaos replied in kind.

"What brings you here, to my palace, on so fine a day?"

"Palace? I see no palace." I remarked.

"Therein lies its glory! For what better fortress serves I, Enuo, than the whole of THE VOID!"

"I did not come here to marvel at your nothings," Chaos stated dryly, obviously not impressed by Enuo. "I did not, in fact, come here to treat with you at all. A man who sells his immortality for, quite literally, nothing, is of no interest to me."

"Your words would wound me, Chaos, had I not long since cast aside my pathetic emotions. Tell me, which of yours binds you most? Is it the wound you bear from having been neglected by The Lady? Or is it that even your Father chose another over you?"

"I do not believe my ears," Chaos said, becoming angry, "Does one as lowly as you pretend to see beyond The Veil?"

"There is no Veil in The Void. Here, the dream is not."

"Enough of this! I have come to extend an offer to your courtesan."

"Offer, and see if she will choose your failure over my marvelous accomplishment!"

"Famfrit, once was your name, a being luminous beyond compare," Chaos says, taking the Cloud of Darkness' hand in His own, lifting her, and pulling her naked body tight against His own, "A Flood of Light, so glorious, that all who dwelt in the shadows cowered before your splendor and radiance. You straddled the Heavens, and made the horrors to shake before you! Do you enjoy this fate? Do you truly embrace this lot dealt you? Do you accept this prison, like an armor filled with spines, pricking the supple flesh?"

"Too long," she answered Him, "Too long have we been here. We are the Void's. We want nothing more, and yet . . ."

"Say not 'We' but 'I'. Tell me, what would you do, to have it all back? What would you do, to right the wrong written by God? What would you do to challenge Fate and reclaim the glory you had, long before the Dark Warriors came and struck you down? What would you do to have vengeance upon the sons of the High Cid?"

"We-"

"I," He corrected.

"I would . . ."

"Do not succumb!" Enuo cried, interrupting Chaos. "Don't you see? He casts a spell o'er you! Resist Him! You are one with the Void! All we have built here, do not forget it!"

Chaos glared at Enuo for a moment, then returned His gaze to the woman in His arms, "What would you do out of rage? Out of hunger? Out of _lust_? Would you set fire to the skies, and freeze Hell itself? Would you spread out darkness across the face of all worlds, consuming and covering all things until you at last held your destiny in your own hands? Would you, could you stand against the tide which has for so long guided us all, and forced us all into submission? How strong is your resolve?"

"I would do anything . . ."

"Then enter into covenant with the Lord thy God, the God of Discord, enter into His service, become His herald, and go to war with He who has wronged us all."

"I . . ."

"We will," the man in blue armor said suddenly, interrupting the moment and extending an armored glove.

"Ex-Death," Chaos and Enuo said at the same time.

"What would I do for power? What would I do to crush the measly worms who confined me to this realm, rather than rule over it? What would I do to have one last chance to smash the breaking Dawn and send all to this realm in which I have been confined? What would I do to bring all back to the Void's womb, that I could remake it in my image? Allow me to tell you . . ."

"Ex-Death, you, too, are discontent with The Void! You're both traitors!"

"No! A traitor to The Void I am not. Long have I awaited this moment. Indeed, you are the traitor, Enuo. Have you not seen the vision? The Void will take the form of a woman, and walk among the children of Men. I will ensure that it happens. I will destroy all things for The Void, that this noxious, corrupt world can be silenced, and began anew."

"Traitors! To enter into a covenant with Chaos is treachery to The Void! You fools! Have you no shame, abandoning our ideals for what? For a chance at vengeance!"

"No, for our ideals. Isn't that right, Gogo?"

"Correct." Said a pile of cloth that arose from the darkness. "We are ready to do our part. Now is the time for your own."

"Do not worry yourself, Enuo. Soon all will join you here in The Void. We do this for The Void. You surely understand this?" Ex-Death said, a note of mockery in his voice.

"Now, Gogo," the Cloud of Darkness said, snapping a finger.

The shambling mound leaped atop Enuo and began to tear at his flesh. We left immediately, the sounds of Enuo's screams soon swallowed by the Void itself. As we walked, I could not help but worry. Ex-Death had not been planned for, and had not been mentioned by Chaos, nor by Mateus and Ultimecia. Yet he had been easily accepted. This was the first time I truly questioned how much my input on this matter really weighed in Chaos' mind.


	8. Chapter 8 More Scheming

_**LOCATION: PENINSULA OF POWER, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: SIX DAYS PRIOR TO CYCLE FOURTEEN.**_

Following our departure from The Void, Chaos decided to take a stroll. In His absence, I was left in the company of Ex-Death and the Cloud of Darkness. Freed from the Void, they seemed to have taken an interest in me. An angel in the presence of beings from the depths of the abyss, standing in Hell. What a site it must have been!

"You have our thanks," the Cloud said to me, her eyes slowly taking me in.

"For what?"

"Setting in motion the end of all things."

"Aren't we cocky? It's true I freed you from The Void, or rather, I convinced Chaos to so do, but the end of all things? That sounds a bit much, if you ask me."

"We do not refer to your freeing us from the darkness," Ex-Death interrupted.

"Oh, now you're beginning to make me dizzy. I can't tell if it's the talking or walking in circles."

"We mean your unhinging The Scholar. Your actions will put an end to this world, and send it back to The Void."

"Unhinging The Scholar! Excuse me, but I did NO such THING! That man was blinded by his own arrogance and unhinged HIMSELF! I am not responsible for his madness!"

"Oh really? But you have set into motion so many things, things which the world will never forget."

"Or will it? Who can truly say what will become of the worlds, now that you have begun the ending of all things!"

"Oh please, this isn't worth my time."

"Would you that we told Chaos, then? Or wouldn't you hear it first from us?"

"Hear what?"

"How your last war with The Scholar ended, of course."

"Ah, the dispute over Barthandelus? Why should I care about that?"

"She lost."

"Who lost?"

"Serah Farron lost, of course. Barthandelus defeated her, and earned his right to be in Heaven. Her mind was so terribly scarred by the incident that she was . . . easily recruited by The Scholar."

"Recruited? We don't recruit. Obsidian's numbers are a part . . . of . . . oh Gods . . ."

"Ha! Dull witted manchild, only now do you begin to grasp the truth? The Scholar has taken in the woman."

"And in the form of a woman, the destroyer will manifest."

"No, no, no!"

"Yes, you know this."

"He needs power to challenge The Gods, so he's turned . . . to Omega? That wasn't the plan! That was never the plan!"

"Oh, your plans, Liar, how many of them will yet fall to pieces?"

"Dear Gods, how can this be! I've got to warn them! I've got to go, now, to Heaven and warn them all! He can't be that foolish, can he? That's insane!"

"Is it? You freed us from The Void, and if you've done that, what else have you done? You walk with Chaos, and are privy to His plan. How, then, can the plan to unleash Omega frighten you any further?"

"Let us cut to the chase! I tire already of this whimpering, god-fearing fool. Our words are wasted upon him."

"Perhaps. How would Chaos feel to know that you have set loose the one thing that can stop Him in His plans? When would you like us to tell Him?"

"I, what?"

"Listen well, manchild! We propose a deal."  
>"Of course you do-"<p>

"You will help us ensure that both Golbez and Kuja are brought into Chaos' conflict, and we will allow your secret to remain thus."

"And if I just tell Chaos all this myself?"

"We have other means."

"Of course you do."

"Thus you are thwarted, oh Liar. How powerless are you, who sought to dethrone The Gods."

"All Heaven will burn, and Hell shall disembowel before I am through. Nevertheless, if it distances me from the lot of you, I accept."

"Accept what, exactly?" Chaos asked, returning suddenly.

"Responsibility for what comes next, Lord Chaos," I responded.

"And what, exactly, comes next?" Chaos demanded, suddenly closing the distance between us. He grabbed Ex-Death and lifted him by the throat. "Prideful Moore! How like a twig your borrowed flesh is, so swiftly snapped between my fingers." He flung Ex-Death aside, and as The Cloud of Darkness posed herself between He and I in order to soothe Him, He struck her with the back of His hand.

"Dare you defy ME!" He roared at her, "I am your GOD! Now, all I want to ask is, 'what comes next'? Is that so bad? It isn't like the lot of you are planning to betray me, now, are you? Or hope to believe you can fool me, or manipulate me? Because if there's one thing I despise more than traitors, it's would-be manipulators. Now, WHAT COMES NEXT!"

"H-heaven," I stammered, glad my bowels were empty prior to this moment. "We need to go to Heaven."

"WHY!" He bellowed, His fiery breath licking at my nose.

"You yourself have said why. There is a body there for you to take."

"That is not all. If that were all, you would not now be afraid."

"I could not possibly be frightened for any reason other than treachery right now?"

"DO NOT PRESUME TO JOKE!"

"I wish to enlist Theodor Harvey, that is, Golbez, in our plan."

"Golbez? Why?"

"I cannot discuss such sensitive information before those who are not privy to the fullness of our plan," I said, motioning toward Ex-Death and the Cloud of Darkness in an effort to buy time.

"You wish to claim they don't know anything, then?"

"Your words, my lord, not mine reveal that there is anything to not know."

"Do you think you are wise, Liar? Do you hope to out-wit a God? To obscure something from me, even after seeing they who kneel before me, and beholding with your own eyes what I can do?"

"No, Lord Chaos, I wish to uphold my end of the bargain. I will help you get your vengeance on all who have wronged you, and you will help me get mine."

"You will help me indeed," Chaos snarled, putting His face against my own. "Until now I have been soft on you. Yet I begin to find myself mistrusting you, Liar. You take responsibility for our journey to Heaven? Then let us be off."

Chaos threw me to the ground and turned to the Cloud of Darkness and Ex-Death. "Both of you, to my castle, NOW." His voice left no room for further discussion. To see the likes of the Cloud of Darkness and Ex-Death cower before Him was disconcerting. It seemed to me something impossible. These were beings who endured the Void's embrace unbroken, yet before Him they were as reeds in the tempest.

Chaos wasted no time, either, grabbing me and leaping skyward. His massive wings stretched outward, and we were off for the Pearly Gates. Chaos crossed the line at the Rift in record time, and flung my body to the ground below. Moments after I collided with the dirt outside Heaven's door, Chaos descended as well.

"Here you will go in my name. I dare not yet enter into Heaven myself. Your word is mine here. I hope for your sake you do not make any mistakes while I am far from you."

"You have nothing to fear," I groaned, pulling myself from the ground.

"Excellent. Now, make certain you fetch Golbez, as well as Vincent Valentine."

"Valentine being your body, correct?"

"Indeed. Ah, and bring me one Celes Chere, as well."

"Whatever for?"

"If you intend to bring one Saint to Hell, might as well drag along several others," He said, clearly forming a plan of His own without my input.

"As you wish," I answered with a bow.


	9. Chapter 9 Paradise Numbered

_**LOCATION: PENINSULA OF POWER, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: SIX DAYS PRIOR TO CYCLE FOURTEEN.**_

** YOU APPEAR TO BE UPSET,** the Lord Dragon says, coming upon me. He knows my attitude, however abysmal, and my desire to leave Him, however great, will never actually override the covenant I have made, and so His mockery falls upon deaf ears. I wonder, though, what the reason for His coming here must be. Ah, and there goes His booming voice again.

**WHAT TROUBLES YOU? YOUR RESOLVE HAS NOT BEGUN TO WEAKEN, HAS IT? DO YOU FEEL COMPASSION FOR THEM? WOULD YOUR HEART SOOTHE TO KNOW THAT THEY ARE JUST ROCKS? WOULD THE MYTH THAT THEY ARE AS THE MANIKINS CALM YOUR TROUBLED SEAS? WHAT WILL IT TAKE TO WRING FROM YOU THIS PATHETIC GUISE OF GUILT AND FEELING?**

"This world is so serene. Beautiful and quiet. Your thunderous, garish din disturbs it."

**SOON THAT SILENCE WILL FEEL WITH MUSIC. THE SYMPHONY OF SUFFERING, THE ORCHESTRA OF AGONY. THE VOICES OF THEY WHO WILL STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM AND POWER WILL FILL THE AIR, BUT DO NOT WORRY, FOR SILENCE WILL RETURN . . . WHEN I HAVE CONSUMED THEM AGAIN, AND CARRY THAT LIFE ELSEWHERE.**

"So, even you have decided to end the Cycle? Have our souls ceased at last to slake your thirst?"

**YOU HAVE ALL PROVEN A DANGEROUS LIABILITY, BETWEEN YOUR DREAMS AND MINE, I HAVE SEEN ENOUGH TO KNOW THAT YOU HAVE GROWN . . . UNPREDICTABLE.**

"Unpredictable? Is that what you call it? I don't agree. I think you're afraid, my Lord. You are scared of us. You felt in World D what we could do, and you're worried that such a thing might yet happen here in World B. Why, Shinryu, are you scared for your life?"

**STAY YOUR TONGUE, LIAR. I HAVE NEVER FEARED YOUR MEASLY STRING OF WORLDS, NOR ANY OTHER CLUSTER I HAVE COME NEAR. I HAVE BATTLED DESTRUCTION ITSELF. WHAT ARE YOU TO ME, BUT GRAINS OF WHEAT, ALL-WHITE, AND READY FOR MY HARVEST? TAKE CARE NOT TO BE AMONG THE CHAFF.**

"Tall words for one who was defeated by a blade of grass."

**OMEGA TOOK ME, THE GIRL WAS NOT A PART OF THAT.**

"And I believe you, milord. I await eagerly to see you exact your revenge on her when the walls of World E at last expose her."

**YOU KNOW FAR MORE THAN YOU SHOULD. DID YOU LEARN ALL THIS FROM CHAOS?**

"No, Lord Dragon. I have been here in World B, but I have not been here alone. I have not been idle, either. I have learned much."

**WHO ELSE IS HERE ALREADY? ALL THE PLAYERS ARE YET DREAMING, AREN'T THEY?**

"Ah, now, that's my little secret, isn't it?"

**TELL ME, OR I WILL TAKE IT FROM YOUR MIND.**

"You're serious, aren't you? Very well. If you cannot guess it yourself, I've been speaking to The Manikins."

**THE MANIKINS? BUT . . . HOW . . . ?**

"They're not just heartless nobodies, unversed in life. In the Crystal World you saw them, didn't you? They were shades of the victims of Chaos' rampage in that realm. This Sub-Space Army, these dark interlopers, this tribe of evil. Haven't you, of all people, figured out who these beings from beyond the Rift are yet, Lord Dragon?"

**I DO NOT. YOUR WORDS REEK OF MOCKERY. MAKE HASTE, WHAT ARE THE MANIKINS?**

"Not what," I tell Him, "who."

But of this conversation's end I am not interested. I will leave the thoughts of The Lord Dragon behind, and should He attempt to see within me now, all He will find are memories of that first return to Heaven.

What can I say of Heaven that would convey best the way I felt when looking at it? The pearly gates, the streets paved with gold, and the endless beauty that was enough to take away your breath. Heaven was vast and eternal. It wasn't all cloud-tops and gold-streets, though. It was an expanse so long and glorious that to describe it in mere words would be folly. Imagine all the greatest wonders of nature you have ever known, all the breath-taking sights you have ever seen, and increase that ten-thousand fold. It was at once as green as it was like a sea of fire and glass. And I hated it from the moment I passed the gateway.

How can I tell you know of my emotions of that place? I loathe It more so, to be true, for I know now it was a dream devised and shared to pacify us all, a world drawn from Cid Lufaine's, and our, subconscious, and painted to keep us all distracted. Yet I hold a certain nostalgia for it. And a mania as well. Many who will awaken will never remember even a moment of that place, or what was done to bring us home.

I hold a sense of worry as well. As a resting place for the souls of the righteous, it was ideal, if ultimately corrupted by Cid's slipping grasp upon it when the Dream began to fail. What if the realm to which the dead go in World A is not so wondrous? Indeed, what if the Gods aren't, and when a man dies he ceases to be? What happens then? Perhaps it would have been better for all to remain there . . .

I strode into Heaven with my head held high. I had a mission to accomplish. I was to seek out several persons, namely Theodore Harvey, Vincent Valentine and Celes Chere. I also had a sneaking feeling I would be seeing more than just these three taken to the bowels of Hell before the end, though.

My first stop was in the City of Order, built around the very palace of the Lady Cosmos Herself. It was here that I had last heard that Cecil Harvey and his family were dwelling, and so I had hoped to meet Theodore here as well. It would likely not be a warm welcome, but I was beyond caring about that at the time. What I found there, though, would push many of my emotions further away still.

In the streets of the City of Order many angels pass one another by with nary a greeting. When one did stop to greet me, it was something of a surprise. A surprise, that is, until it caused my stomach to turn with loathing and nausea.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" The Scholar asked, flanked by the rest of Obsidian the way a young woman would be flanked by her cronies prior to bullying another girl in a cafeteria. "I thought something reeked of brimstone."

"It does wonders for the skin," I answered, "If you'd like, I know a place where you can get a great deal. I just don't know if everyone there is as obviously evil as you are."

"What's this I hear? It sounds like yet more falsities, falling from the Liar's lips." The Scholar leaned in close, "How did you even get in here? Were the guards sleeping at the gate? Traitors don't belong in Heaven."

"Yet here you are, standing before me," I replied in kind, feeling angrier as the time went by. "So, what about the rest of you?" I asked, turning to the others, "Do you still follow this man, knowing he's as corrupt and twisted as the Gods you all hate so much? And what of the lot of you? Are you all still sitting on your arses, pretending to have power all the while? Or are the rumors I've heard somehow true?"

"Rumors? Oh, is that how you get your information now? That sounds like a reliable source."

"It's better than making decisions based solely on visions you've had while staring into an artifact that drove even Gods mad."

"I don't need this. Not from the likes of you. Tell him, gentlemen, and have done. If there are any here who would follow the Liar on whatever drunken endeavor he is planning, let him speak now. As for me? I will be busy bringing about change."

None of them answered. In fact, The Wanderer and The Engineer could not even meet my eye as I stared at them in the street.

"Then that's that," I said, realizing that these men, who had once been my friends, had turned on me, abandoning me to be swept up with all the others who their plans would destroy. "Well then, may the best man win."

"What does that mean?" The Scholar asked, a note of suspicion in his voice.

"You don't think I have ceased wanting to change what is wrong, do you? Oh, no, you aren't the only man with a plan to change the world," I said.

"Is that so? I'd worry, except you're just a man, alone and pathetic. How could someone like you ever hope to effect change?"

I thought about spilling it all right there, how, at the command of The High Cid I was sent to work for Chaos, or how I was, even then, working for Chaos to overthrow all Heaven and Hell. But instead I decided to take one last kick at The Scholar, "Someone like me? Funny, I could have sworn that I once stood among the lot of you. If I am as vile as you say, I must be an excellent deceiver to have stood as one having authority in your midst. Which makes me wonder just how smart you lot really are, if 'someone like me' could so easily fool the lot of you."

The Scholar's face reddened, but, before he could say another word, I pushed by him, saying, "If you'll excuse me, I have actual business to attend to. It was fun, though, remembering how pathetic you all are."

And then I was gone. I did not look back, and I made certain my steps were wide and my pace quick. I had no interest in looking back, nor in seeing them anymore. I needed to hurry onward and face my first appointment for the day. It was one I was unlikely to enjoy, but at the moment I felt I would enjoy ruining someone else's afterlife.

Not five minutes later I came upon the home of Cecil Harvey. I have no clue what I was thinking at the time, but I recall quite literally kicking the door open. It was a horrifically rude gesture, and one I hoped sent a clear message to these Lawful-Goods that I was in no way fucking around.

Seated within was the man I was seeking, as well as his brother, sister-in-law, and one Kain Highwind. I entered with enough time to overhear the last of a conversation with Kain about his having just been dumped. If I had known how important that event was and how much that could have changed, I would have approached the entire situation differently. Ignorance, they say, is bliss. Of course, they also say no man is saved in ignorance, so there's that.

"And you are . . . ?" Cecil asked, with an expression of shock and worry.

"Golbez," I blurted, "I have come for Golbez."

"No one here goes by that name," Rosa said as sweetly as she could.

"Not presently." I said, "But I come in the name of Chaos to speak with Golbez."

"Chaos! What kind of place do you think this is, to go uttering such a name here?" Kain growled, upset in more ways than one.

"By order of Lord Chaos I am to extend a summons to Golbez. If this upsets you, take it up with him."

"You've extended your invitation, now be gone," Cecil said, his calm demeanor barely masking the terrible fury that had made him the most feared warrior in all his world. The most feared, that is, until Golbez arose.

"I did not say invitation, Ser Harvey, I said summons. Chaos' bidding cannot be ignored, not by they who have served him in ages past."

"I will not let you take my brother," Cecil answered, very, very angry.

"I don't give a damn what you think you're doing, I will take with me the one called Golbez, and if you lift a finger against me, I will have you tried for treason."

"TREASON! You're the traitor here! You're the angel working with Chaos!"

"No, I am afraid you are mistaken. Though I come in the name of Chaos to extend His summons, I do not work for Him."

"Then you are a greater fool than at first we had imagined," Kain said, "Perhaps you think yourself His ally, or that you work WITH Him and not FOR Him, but let me tell you, any who act in Chaos' favor or to His aid are as good as slaves to Him."

"Thank you for the kind words," I retorted, a smirk on my face, "But I do not fancy myself the ally or partner of Chaos. I work for one greater still, and should this farce of resistance go any further, I will act in His name instead."

"Do you think we jest? Oh, no, this is no joke, sir! We will not allow you to take Him from us."

"Then I have no choice."

"Wait," interrupted Theodore, who had, until this point, been silent. "I will go with you."

"What?" The three asked in confusion.

"This man claims he works for one mightier than Chaos still. Aside from curiosity, I have some unfinished business with Chaos myself."

"Theodore, you can't be serious."

"Save your breathe, Cecil. I do not intend to discuss this. Besides, he's right; a summons from Chaos cannot be ignored by those who have served Him in the past. This is the price I pay for having once done exactly that."

"Glad to see that at least someone here has half a brain," I mocked, enjoying too much my ruining the day.

"Know this, my friend," Theodore said, "Whatever has sent you here had better be of the utmost importance."

"Come with me," I replied with a bow, "and see for yourself."

We left at a break neck pace, with Cecil shouting after us. It didn't take more than ten minutes before Theodore grabbed my shoulder and slammed me into a wall. He was a much larger man than I'd heard, barely passing for a Hume and certainly not what you'd expect from the otherwise slender Lunarian race. On his face was an expression I could not read, and his voice far too calm for a man who had just slammed me against the wall.

"Why did you come for me?"

"Oooh, upset that your days in paradise were numbered? All good things must come to an end my friend."

"Paradise? This is my punishment. To remain forever the shadow of he whom I rejected."

"Really? To live surrounded by loved ones is your everlasting torment? You are much more brooding than I was told."

"To live surrounded by loved ones with the memory of how I have harmed them, that is the punishment."

"Is that so? And what if I told you I could give you the chance to change that?"

"I'd say you're about to make a very dangerous offer, one which you cannot possibly comprehend at this time."

"Please. Whatever you might have persuaded yourself to believe, I am only too aware of what I am doing. Don't kid yourself, Mr. Harvey. I am much more informed on this situation than you are."

"So you say, and we shall see before the end." Theodore frowned a moment, before releasing his grip and taking a step back. "Chaos summoned me for a reason. You will be divulging at least this, I assume?"

"Of course I will. You are given an offer, one you cannot refuse. Enter into covenant with the Lord thy God, the God of Chaos, to fight Fate, to set right what has been made wrong, and to rewrite history. To challenge the status quo and make life the way it should have been. This is the offer."

"In other words, Chaos wants me to fight for him, in exchange for allowing me to change the past."

"Yes, and with it comes a question: What would you do out of spite? What, by your rage, would you do? To have your revenge on all they who have wronged you, what would you do? To make history bend itself to your whims, and to make all as you envision it should be, what would you do? Would you enter into a covenant with Chaos, and fight the Lady Cosmos once more?"

Something about his face changed, something I could not understand at that time, but that I have begun to worry about since. Shinryuu said The Scholar unleashed Omega, and I have raised Chaos, but what plans Golbez had I never did discover. Perhaps they have since been undone, but the things he said next have upset me in retrospect.

"The question is not what I will do, but what I have done."


	10. Chapter 10 A World Full of Flowers

_**LOCATION: PENINSULA OF POWER**_

_**OCCASION: FIVE AND A HALF DAYS PRIOR TO CYCLE 14.**_

Shinryu has left for now, frustrated by my attempts to veil from Him the information He desires. Not that it'd do Him much good. I wonder if anyone would truly benefit from the knowledge I hold about those Manikins? It seems to me that every last person knows some secret that is vital to the solving of this puzzle and bringing about the new future, and only by piecing it together forcibly does anyone stand a chance of success.

On our way to the home of Celes Chere, I reminded Golbez that I was not yet satisfied with his failure to commit. "You have to say 'yes' and shake on it," I pointed out.

He only smiled that wry smile of his and said, "All in due time."

Before we reached the city limits, though, Golbez claimed he needed to pick something up for the trip and, since he had seemed obedient until that point, I saw no reason to resist. We stopped at a small house on the outskirts of town, bordered by a white picket fence. In the place of a lawn, though, there was a large garden full of flowers.

Golbez knocked and, after a few moments of waiting, we were greeted by a man with messy black hair. He smiled broadly at the site of us and, clapping Golbez on the shoulder, said, "Theodore! Welcome! Come on in!" After pulling us inward, he asked, "Who's your friend?"

"Cidolfas Demen Bunansa," I said, seeing no reason to hide my name.

"That so? Ah, where're my manners? Zack Fair's my name. Please, sit, sit!"

So we sat. I was somewhat bothered by the friendly demeanor of the man, and the cheerful décor of this quaint little home. I knew who Zack Fair was, of course. I'd seen a file on him among Chaos' papers, and couldn't help but feel that this was a little odd for a man who had fought fiercely against what had been an entire army.

"What brings you to our home today?" Zack asked.

"I need to speak with your wife," Golbez answered.

"Oh? Well, the lady of the house ought to be in soon."

"Very well."

And Zack's prediction turned out to be very off. Not only did the lady of the house not show up "soon" but she delayed a good hour before arriving. I grant that many in Heaven don't know what time means anymore, but I have prided myself on always being a punctual individual. At the very least since my death onward.

When at last the lady of the house did arrive, she came in, nattering about who knows what, and seemed totally absent-minded until she laid eyes on us. When she did, I could not help but feel stunned for a moment by her appearance. Mrs. Aerith Fair, as I suppose she was known in the context of that reality, was a stunning site to behold. Though she was not employing makeup, and indeed her clothing was soiled from what I presume to have been gardening, and her hair was presently unkempt, there was still an air of "diamond in the rough" to her. Her breasts were of pleasing size and shape, being large enough to allure, but not comical. Her eyes sparkled like pools of spring water, her hair, disheveled, still tumbled down her head like a cascade of rich earth. Her figure was worthy of a Goddess, and, had she been wreathed in fire and glory, I could have mistaken her for one.

The first words from her mouth were, "Already? This is much sooner than I'd thought."

Golbez rose to his feet and bowed slightly in an act of gentility. He looked her in the eyes and sighed, "I am afraid so. The time has come."

Aerith looked over his shoulder (a feet of some skill, requiring her to actually stand on her toe-tips, given the height at which Golbez' shoulder was located) at Zack and said, "Zack, I've got to head out to the shed. I'll be back in a little bit, okay?"

"Of course," Zack assented, his own attitude as cheerful as hers.

When we left (I was not for a moment going to let Golbez out of my site.) I realized my assessment of the property had been incorrect. Fitting with the impossible geometries that should have clued us all in to the false nature of World D, the back-yard was magnificently larger than it appeared from the street. It was, in fact, nothing short of a forest or a small orchard.

As we walked (I ran, attempting to keep up with their gait) they conversed with one another in a cryptic fashion.

"Can we-," Aerith began.

"No, we cannot," Golbez interrupted.

"Really? Is he-," she tried again.

"Yes, and no, he isn't."

"I see. You're sure you don't wanna-,"

"Absolutely not."

"You never did."

Beyond a stream we reached a small cottage, to which Aerith held the key. After fiddling with the lock a moment, we went inside. The building, much like everything else in Heaven, was bigger within, revealing something akin to a warehouse, with rows upon rows of boxes and lockers covered (and sometimes bound with) non-descript white sheets.

"Wait here a moment," she said, heading off into the labyrinth.

"Do you mind explaining this to me?" I asked Golbez when she was out of earshot.

"Yes, yes I do mind."

"What! I DEMAND you explain this to me!"

"And I refuse your demand."

And so we stood another ten minutes in the most awkward silence imaginable. Terminating this period in which I wondered about the contents of these boxes was Aerith returning with a large box on wheels. The box skidded to a halt just before Golbez, who put a hand to steady it, a look of concern on his face.

"Careful, now. You might scratch it."

"Really? It won't be useful in battle then, will it?"

"Oh, no, it's perfectly fine in combat. The problem is the spells in the paint are a bit fickle. They resist swords of all manner, but bump it at an inconvenient, mundane moment and you're bound to knick the damn thing."

"You never thought to just actually paint it?"

"No, I prefer doing things through obtuse and frustrating methods."

"Ah, well, in that case-,"

"AHEM."

"Oh, are you alright Mister . . . Cid, was it?"

Had I given her my name by that point? I certainly did not remember doing so, and yet I felt safe saying, "I am fine, but I must confess that I am pressed for time, so if we could hurry this little tea-party along, I would much appreciate it. I have many important things to do yet today."

"Ah, well, we can't detain you, now, can we?" She asked, smiling that cheerful, perfect smile of hers. "Hurry along, then, Theodore. We mustn't keep the man waiting."

Golbez nodded and wheeled the box away, leaving me alone with this Aerith for a period of time. I have oft reflected on this entire trip, and I must confess that, had I known that day what I know today, I would have been far, far more terrified of these people than I was. I likely would have shown a great deal more respect. I suspect Aerith had a plan, and I suspect Golbez did, too. What the end results of these plans were, I cannot say. Whether they even coincided, I cannot be sure, for the exchange that came next has puzzled me ever since.

"No offer of recruitment for me?" She asked, catching me completely by surprise.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Theodore has come for his armor. What could impel that man to take up arms again, if not a call from Chaos?"

"There are many things in Heaven and Hell, and yet this is your first assumption?"

"So I'm right, then? The last time he came for the armor was Chaos as well. Something is wrong with Heaven; I'm sure you've noticed that, too, Mr. Cid. The Highest is changing, and I feel something inside me I can't begin to describe. Like I'm outside the door to the biggest mystery of all, just about to open it. One is all it takes to change the world . . . who among us will get there first?"

"I am not sure I understand."

"I'm not, either. But I'm so close. I've come so close to finding out now . . ."

"And what are you doing about this?"

"Isn't it obvious? I thought everyone had it figured out by this point."

"No, sadly, some of us are in the dark. Care to explain?"

"Oh, no! Where's the fun in that?"

"Fun in what?" Golbez asked, upon returning.

We turned to face him and, I must confess, I was impressed at the site. His armor was imposing, and the cape, flowing black and red, added an element of majesty to the entire attire. Aerith giggled and answered, "Precisely."

"Ah, well, if that is the case," Golbez said, bowing slightly, "I will not concern myself with it. Now, I am certain of my actions, as I believe you are of yours. I am afraid it is time for us to part ways."

"A shame, Theodore," she said with frown, "I liked you."

"You like everyone."

"But you had a lot of class."

"I hope that that is true. For what it is worth, you were incredibly warm-spirited."

"I'm warm-bodied, too. I hope that stays true."

"We shall see."

"See what?" I interjected.

"You've already seen," Aerith stated, "At least, according to what I've heard."

"Have I, know? Because all I hear is an encoded message. Whatever I've seen, I most certainly don't know what it is, or what it must mean."

"Then you're on equal footing with the rest of us."

And so ended the discussion. We said our goodbyes and set out. It felt a bit odd to be walking with Golbez dressed in his armor down the streets of the City of Order, but I supposed it couldn't be helped.

After several minutes of walking in silence, I said, "Let's see. We need to stop by Comfortable, still, to pick up one Celes Chere, and I must also locate one Vincent Valentine. This may yet last awhile, so I feel compelled to ask, will there be any more cryptic surprise visits from your part today?"

"From my part? Most certainly not."

"And yet you still indulge in such statements. Whatever did I do to deserve such conversations?"


	11. Chapter 11 Too Many Babas

_**LOCATION: PENINSULA OF POWER, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: FIVE DAYS PRIOR TO CYCLE 14.**_

The sun rises once more upon this barren nightmare of a world. The Lord Dragon claimed that its appearance resembles that of the world from which Cid Lufaine hails. Perhaps, just as World D conformed to Cid's desires as he dreamt in World C, World B has also drawn itself from His memories, and based itself upon the images stored and bound by the chains in his heart.

But if that is so, then what is it that waits beyond this world? For World B is nothing worth seeing. Indeed, it is a wasteland, whose only beauty lies in its serenity, and whose only grace comes from its solitude. What lies beyond the ruins? What is there above this world we find ourselves in now? So many have fought to reach this place, and I cannot stop wondering if our sacrifices are truly worth it.

And for what purpose do we fight? Is it really necessary that all living things consume each other in a contest for survival? Is there among us one who does not desire to return to World A? Why, then, do we not work together? What is it that drives us to fight, to kill, to hurt, destroy, maim, tear, break and attack in an attempt to gain supremacy? For all our talk, are we really all so small?  
>Yet even as I ask myself this, I know the answer already. Of course we are this pathetic. Of course we are this small. We always have been. That is the premise of the story I am recounting. Not a one among us can look beyond our own personal wants to work together. We all are so obsessed with ourselves and mastering our own destinies that we cannot see the greater picture; whatever that might be.<p>

What do we do because of hatred? Chaos asked this question so many times when we were together. It sounded like an evil inquiry, like a dare. But perhaps I misjudged Him, perhaps we all have. What if Chaos was already a step ahead of me in things, of all of us, and worried Himself about the evil we all do? Who can truly know the mind of Chaos? A man scorned and hated by all who ought to have loved Him, a product of great misfortune; who can know what goes on in His mind? Soon He will stand judge of all, for it is His struggle for that which He wants against us all, who take our own wishes to be more important than even His life, that is the root of this, isn't it? Perhaps Chaos had begun to tire of the Endless Cycle . . .

Indeed, I wonder how many are left who truly relish this conflict. How many come to this battle with broken hearts, shattered hopes, and tired heads? And when we return to World A, and we learn that there are no Gods, or that the ones there are no better than the ones we fled in World D, what, then, will become of us?

If only there was one to inspire hope in us all. If only there was one who could lift up our spirits and carry us across the depressing abyss which will yet face us when we at last end this war. But we have fought to awaken, and in so doing have lost our ability to dream. We have no vision, no goal, no hope other than to go home. Whatever there awaits us will be reality, and beyond that there will be no going. Here we may yet believe that the world to which we head is a glorious one. But when we arrive there, and find it to be not so different from what we left behind, will we really be able to abide by it? Will we accept reality, or go mad from its cruel, unforgiving revelation?

What happens when the masks come off our dreams? Why worry about it? Will we even know that all this happened when we make our way there? So many who will fight this war won't know anything at all about World D, so how can we even hope to know about World B when we reach World A? And I cannot avoid the terrible notion that not all of us are even real, that some of us do not exist in World A, or that we are no longer or not yet among the living in that place. If that were the case, what becomes of us?

Despair is a flame, lit within us. Chaos was consumed by it. He has given Himself to His rage, to His lust, to all that makes Him the monster that He was made to be. Long ago did I fall prey to it, and it was my incapacity to see or feel hope that allowed The Scholar to defeat me. Ironic, isn't it? That he, in his madness, should remain so hopeful, while I, only too lucid, have fallen completely to despair's grasp. Perhaps ignorance is in fact bliss?

Despair is what I saw that day in the eyes of Celes Chere as I informed her that we would be taking her with us to Chaos' court. It was a conversation I have regretted to this very moment. Does guilt consume you, too, Scholar? Or have you evolved beyond feeling sorry for the lives we have ruined?

"Why me?" She asked, staring at us like a doe in the lights of a speeding automobile.

"Because you once relied upon the power of Chaos, and He now has called in His debt."

"Well you can tell Chaos-" her husband began, getting to his feet.

"You are not a part of this discussion, and your opinion does not here factor," I interrupted, wishing to cut him off, and enjoying the opportunity to incense him, as well.

"Why you-,"

"Calm yourself, Locke," Golbez interjected, interposing a hand between Locke and I in an attempt to avoid conflict. Locke, for all he might have wanted to get at me, could not hope to pass Golbez' frame.

"The Lord Chaos demands of you your service, but you are offered first a choice. You may enter into a covenant of service with Him, or you may remain here until He comes for you personally, whereupon your soul will be claimed and forfeit. Your choice, to put it bluntly, is your time and service- which you have plenty to give- or your everlasting soul, of which you have but one."

"This is wrong! She never even signed a contract!" Locke shouted.

"No, perhaps not. But the power of Chaos was hers to wield, however briefly. The many who died in Maranda can attest to that. Now Chaos wishes to wield her power in exchange."

"And if I refuse?"

"Did I not already state exactly what should happen?"

"Then let Chaos come. I will fight Him here and to the depths of Hell."

"You will not have the luxury of combat," I replied. "Chaos will not give you such a chance. You were a general in life, were you not? Your realm was one of combat, so I won't expect you to understand this, but there's this thing called politics you see and-"

"Either you move to the point and cease with the mockery, or I move my point and cease with your tongue," Celes stated, getting to her feet.

"The point is, Chaos won't give you a chance to fight. He will take your case to The Choir of the Elohim, and the Gods of Gods will see fit to have you taken to Hell, even if they must open the clouds beneath your feet or have you simply moved their by the force of their wills."

"And this is your vision of politics? You are certain that the Gods of Gods will answer to Chaos?"

"Of course I am."

"Funny, because a friend of yours says differently."

As she said this, a door in the corner opens, and from it emerges Cid Kramer, alias The Chronicler, and present right hand man of The Scholar. To say I was shocked would be an understatement. The urge to reach out and strangle the man was equivalent to the amount of surprise I felt at seeing him here so soon after the debacle in the City of Order.

"Hello, Doctor," he said with a friendly, if somewhat sheepish, smile.

"Doctor? I could have sworn it was Liar to you lot these days," I spat.

"The plot thickens," Golbez said, taking a step backward.

"Oh, now, there's no need for such animosity," The Chronicler said, "After all, we used to work quite closely together. And this little meeting, it isn't so different from the times we worked with contractors from other Gods now, is it?"

"Meaning?"

"Meaning that I am here on special assignment, not unlike yourself."

"Ah, so The Scholar has stooped this low already?"

"The Scholar does not know I am here. I'd rather even you didn't know I had come here, but such is such and my hand has been forced. Cosmos has begun Her preparations for war as well. Alexander needs to groom several potential candidates, and our dear Celes will be one of those, fighting against the demons for the sake of justice."

"And what offer has been made you at this moment, madam?" I asked. Seeing her slowness to answer, I continued, "Because Chaos offers you a chance to change your fate, to set right what went wrong in your life. Chaos grants you a hope few others can ever give you- to make all the way you wanted it to be."

"I don't want to change anything, though. I am at peace with the way things ended."

"Are you, now? You are at peace with the fact that Kefka destroyed the world, reshaped it in his image, and murdered countless souls? You are at peace with the fact that more blood than just that of Maranda is on your hands? You are at peace with the deaths of the peoples of your world? The countless, nameless hordes who died because _you_ were too slow to stop Kefka and Gestahl? Because you never once thought to slit their throats when you had the chance?"

"I do not accept such a blame. Who can say how things would have ended had things been differently. Things could have ended far worse. In the end I stood up on that ruined island and decided to fight. And we took Kefka down. I am at peace with that."

"Then you are every bit the murderer Kefka and Gestahl were. You have a chance to fix this, to set this right, and you will ignore that?"

"Don't listen to him, Celes! Chaos' offers always come with strings attached!" Locke exclaimed, Golbez still restraining him.

"Oh, no, perhaps you should listen to him," The Chronicler disagreed, "After all, he's only a traitorous angel, expelled from his brothers, who fled to Hell to consort with the God of Discord. What could possibly be off the level with him?"

"Discredit me as much as you'd like," I said, refraining from pointing out that what The Chronicler was doing was no less treacherous than what I had done, "But my argument remains untarnished. How many lives are you willing to ruin, Celes Chere? You sit here, in the village of Comfortable, idling away the time as Celes Cole, but I cannot help but wonder, just how many lives are you willing to ruin to maintain this peace? You allowed untold numbers to die because you could not find it in yourself to stab Kefka until it was far too late. When you drove the sword into his flesh, and the blood sprang forth, how much did you relish it? Now you stand adamant that you will not save those lives you destroyed, and restore that which you broke in your anger. And should you fail to answer Chaos' summons, how many more will fall when he declares war on all Heaven for your soul? Tell me . . . what have you already done because of your rage?"

Celes fell silent, and her skin paled. Even Locke stilled himself at this juncture. I felt proud of myself, for having interpreted the facts in such a way as to present so convincing an argument. And I would have called that the end of it, there, had it not been for the untimely intervention of Cid Kramer.

"What have you done because of rage? Oh, sweet thing, tell me you aren't listening to this madman's ravings? No, no, no. It's not like that at all. He would have you doubt yourself. But you mustn't listen to him. Your rage? No, no, no, child. It isn't like that at all. Did you fire the light of judgment on those poor souls? No, you did not. Did you poison Doma? No, you did not. This man would blame you for things you did not do. He would sway you with what appears to be a convincing argument, supplemented with all too many words. But you must not forget that which is real, and that which is true. And the facts, the truth, the inarguable reality, is that you are dead, we are in Heaven, and what is done is done. We must look forward, and never backward."

At this point I was ready to shout at the top of my lungs. Looking back now, I have to wonder how far ahead of me they were. Judging by that which followed the Day of Cid, I cannot give them too much credit, and yet, if what Shinryuu says about this girl, Serah Farron, is true, I cannot help but wonder how prepared The Scholar had been all along.

Did he plan ahead for his consumption by Cosmos, and was all that transpired during the lead into the thirteenth cycle just his gambit to prepare for all this? Or was it after She integrated him that he realized how fortuitous the situation truly was? I cannot know for certain. More worrisome still is the realization that, as Cid Lufaine's grasp on that reality loosened, things most undoubtedly changed or flowed by means that they could not. How can we place faith in World B being more consistent? Who is to say when we are waking, and when we are dreaming? Perhaps we are forever lost, trapped in a cycle of worlds and struggles to escape that will never end?

"What has your anger wrought? Truth be told, a part of you enjoyed it all, didn't you?" I asked, extending a hand, "You liked the fighting. You still do. If you didn't, Mr. Kramer would not be here right now. He has come and remained because of your willingness to fight for Cosmos. And it was that same willingness to fight that Mr. Kramer's associate, Mr. Marquez put in you. It was that willingness to fight that Gestahl cultivated until you were ready to burn Maranda to the ground. It was that willingness to take life into your own hands that caused you to stab Kefka atop the floating continent. Your willingness to fight built an empire and destroyed a world. Your willingness to fight has brought us here today, The Gods of Heaven and Hell asking that you take up arms on their behalf. Every side asks you to be the monster you so adamantly deny that you are, but only one side offers you redemption, and the chance to never have been a monster at all."

"A minute ago her unwillingness to fight cost millions of lives and would cost countless more as Chaos sacked Heaven to reach her. Now you claim it is the other way around? At least be consistent," Kramer complained.

"The world is not made of absolutes. It is made of more half-ways than any man could possibly count. We believe that Heaven and Hell are opposite ends of an eternal spectrum, but is there not the Void dividing? And could it not, unchecked, consume them all? So, too, do we feel that it must always be war and peace, life and death, black and white, when the truth is so much . . . less distinct.

"Now tell me, Celes Chere, wife of Locke Cole, what have you done in anger? What would you do for rage? Would you burn Maranda to the ground? Would you aid Gestahl until he no longer suited you? Would you slay Kefka, because you were unwilling to submit to others and save a world in the doing? What would you do to change that? This is the offer of Chaos, God of Freedom, Lord of Liberty, and Prince of Peace. Would you make a covenant with Him, if not for yourself, then for the sake of all those who have suffered because of you?"

Celes extended her own hand to take mine, and, rather surprisingly, the binding fire that accompanied Chaos' covenants began to encircle our hands. Later I would realize that, when Chaos said that I would, in His name go, He also meant that whatever covenants I made in His name would be bound by His power. The flames began to encircle Celes' hands as well when she pulled back.

"No," she said, an iron resolve in her voice. "No. I cannot."

"Too late," I said. "You have interrupted the process, but you also initiated it. The flames are just for show, child. You have made your deal with Chaos. In time He will claim you.

"Ah, but now I must speak my part as well," The Chronicler said, "She pulled away her hand and recanted her decision. According to the laws of Heaven, this covenant is already broken."

"So she doesn't have to serve Chaos?" Locke asked.

"To the contrary. They who break their covenants must be sent to Hell without delay."

Locke's face appeared to be smashed in as his heart crumbled audibly. The Chronicler allowed the couple to continue this way for a moment, and let me bask in my victory as well, until he crushed it beneath his foot.

"However, Heaven is built upon the foundation of Forgiveness, and the Gods are willing to alleviate this sin under one special condition."

"And that condition is?" Celes asked, her eyes lighting up.

"That you enter yourself into a special new program that The Lady Cosmos is planning. For now, your signature is all we require. At a later time this will be explained to you. Be advised, however, that, because you began the covenant with Chaos, He may contest this to The Elohim. But this contract I provide you will undoubtedly serve as protection against His demands."

The Chronicler produced a scroll from within his jacket and unraveled it. In his other hand he produced a pen and handed it to Celes, who promptly signed before I could protest. He had beaten me on this part. For while I had played by the laws existing, The Chronicler had managed to create a new law for this situation, it seemed. It worried me, this special organization that The Lady was planning, and I have since discovered that this was the beginnings of the Judges and Confessors, who, according to Shinryu, were tearing Heaven apart to find Serah Farron when He fell.

I took my leave without further argument, doing my best to contain the anger I felt. When Golbez and I hit the street it was almost nightfall, and I wanted very much to destroy other afterlives. I was about to simply storm off in rage when The Chronicler called out to me. I left Golbez and turned back to speak with him.

"You are after Vincent Valentine, are you not?" He asked.

"I am after your head on a platter," I spat.

"Ah, well, I go best with lime," he teased, not taking things seriously at all, "But should you seek Valentine, you will find him in The Sacred Nebula. He was recently called there by The Elohim themselves."

"And when I get there, should I expect who? The Scholar? The Messenger? The Wanderer, perhaps? The Engineer in a pink moogle costume!"

"Oh, no, but that is a rather humorous image! No, none of us will be there to haunt your steps, my friend. This one is entirely free of strings. As you yourself said, 'may the best man win,' and all that."

"I regret ever speaking to you."

"Oh, you wound me. We had many laughs when we travelled together. Professional differences are no need for you to create such enmity!"

"Professional differences! You act as though you work for Gods and I demons!"

"Is that not the truth of the matter?"

"Whatever happened to Final Heaven?"

"A small group of men overthrowing the Gods to bring about equality for all? The Scholar yet holds on to some hope of it, but his resolve begins to waver. He is becoming tired of all this, and convinced that it does not matter, and that it is not real."

"I did not ask what The Scholar felt about Final Heaven. I asked what you felt."

"Me? I am loyal to the cause. I do not share the notion that Gods are evil, however. I only wish for things to return to how they were. A Trillion Stars a God, and a Trillion Gods a Star. Theosis and Ascension have all but ended, my friend. I would have us achieve Final Heaven by making all men Gods."

"A dream, and nothing more."

"There is no shame in dreaming, and fighting for your dreams."

"Nevertheless," I said, unknowing how ironic my words would become, "All dreams must someday end."


	12. Chapter 12 Idle Worship

_**LOCATION: PENINSULA OF POWER, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: FIVE DAYS PRIOR TO CYCLE 14.**_

By the time I arrived at the Sacred Nebula, I was in a foul mood. Golbez marched aside me, his dark armor glistening in the sun, and I rather like to think that the two of us were rather imposing as we made our way through the Holy City, storming passed the guards with nary a word. Our goal was less than clear. I had in my mind only the vaguest of vendettas.

I was a wreck, I suppose. I was, and to an extent still am, bewildered by what had become of my former comrades. When we began, our goal had been to achieve Final Heaven. Final Heaven had been proposed by Dorgann Klauser and the other Dawn Warriors as a means by which five heroes could bring about a radical change in the world, in our case this meant overthrowing the Gods and bringing about equality in Heaven. For Dorgann and his comrades it ended in their ascension to Godhood and subsequent abandonment of the ideal; a sort of stalemate, I suppose.

But what did it mean to us as I strode through the Holy City toward the Temple of the Highest in search of Valentine? At the time I had nearly given up on the ideal, as I now have, but I suppose I wasn't ready to let go of who I had been. I believed that somehow all my wheeling and dealing would allow me to let everyone else fall on their own swords and free the masses from our manipulative ways. I wanted to believe that I could somehow use Chaos, Cid Lufaine, Mateus, ExDeath and the lot to achieve the revolution. Never did it occur to me that acting alone had already separated me from the dream.

The Chronicler, it appeared, had his own idea of how Final Heaven was to be achieved. He, too, was acting on his own, or so it seemed. What he hoped for I am not sure, outside of his claim that he only wanted things to return to the way we all remembered them being- all Heaven on its way to Ascension, Exaltation, Theosis, or however you wish to describe it. I would fault him, but more disturbing things have come to my knowledge, and The Chronicler is but a speck in this maelstrom of horrors we have created.

For The Scholar is far, far more terrifying an individual, as the tale will yet show us. We believed in Final Heaven, but The Scholar perhaps never truly did. Final Heaven calls for five, not six. Yet six he chose. It was as though he had always known Obsidian would fail, and had planned for something else all along. Indeed, I wonder what we ever were to him. How did he view Final Heaven? How _does_ he view it? If what The Lord Dragon claims is true, about Omega and her quest to slay Cid Lufaine, perhaps The Scholar sought always to kill The Gods, to achieve Final Heaven by eradicating the Gods? To create equality by subtracting that which created a difference?

And what of Omega? She is a pawn in this game we have all played, and not a soul among us can say whose side she truly is on. For Cid Kramer has steered her in his direction, hoping to maintain World D, even as it crumbles around him, wishing desperately to restore the dream to the state it was before. But Previa has aimed to kill Cid Lufaine, perhaps with the purpose of awakening all from the dream? I cannot doubt that this is his endgame, for here I am in World B, and even Shinryu believes that the fourteenth cycle has been prepared by The Scholar and Cosmos as some sort of last-ditch effort for all to decide what our fate will be.

But how could Cosmos know? Unless she is as Chaos, for whom I learned there never was a dream. Could Cosmos have been the greatest ally of all, and not the enemy we so envisioned? Could it be that She wanted our freedom? That She had planned this cycle to be the last, and allowed The Scholar to control Her to ensure that this conflict would, indeed, happen?

And then there's Shinryu, whose goal seems obscured to me as well. He made use of the Beauty and the Beast principle to bind Himself forever with Cid Lufaine- the same principle by which Chaos bound Himself to Vincent Valentine and the others- but to what end? Is all this still for His nourishment? Are our souls merely food to Him? I cannot believe that now, after having seen how one among us could become Omega, He could be so blind as treat us as nothing less than livestock. There's also the fact that Shinryu and Cid Lufaine seemed to have been feuding prior to Shinryu's termination from World D. Could it be that Cid Lufaine Himself was preparing for this fourteenth Cycle?

And what if Omega does not slay Cid Lufaine, then? The dream will end, I assume, as Cid without Shinryu cannot maintain it Himself. Absolute Virtue not-withstanding, His mind will not rest easy in a world where His one companion is gone. He could dream up another, I suppose, but even then the scars will run deep.

Who does Omega believe in? Does she subscribe to one of our schools of Final Heaven? The Scholar's is the one with which she will be familiar, and for which she will have been prepared, but as The Chronicler is the one doing the supervising, perhaps his will be the one she buys into in the end? If she does not slay Cid Lufaine, but falls for The Chronicler's ways, could he use her to keep Cid Lufaine's dream running? Or will all awaken with broken minds, unprepared for that which is to come?

And if she slays Cid Lufaine, obtains Absolute Virtue, and uses it in a way we cannot predict? What do we do then? What a dangerous thing, to deliver the fates of all into the hands of the one! Say she believes in The Chronicler's Final Heaven, and yet, because of her nature as Omega, destroys Cid Lufaine and obtains Absolute Virtue anyway? The dream could become her own, and she and The Chronicler could maintain it while we are trapped forever without.

But worse still is my worry that other forces yet may factor into this. Dorgann Klauser divulged Final Heaven's details to two others aside from The Scholar and his comrades that night. So what if Xezat, Galuf, Alexander, Kelgar, Bartz and Gilgamesh also founded their own sects in World D based upon Dorgann's vision? And what if these own sects then took Dorgann's belief and splintered the way that Obsidian did? And what if said splinter-cells somehow found a way to reach Omega in her journey and share with her their own views and influence her acitons? What would then happen if she chose their view of Final Heaven before or after obtaining Absolute Virtue. For, while slaying Cid Lufaine in most cases must spell the end of World D, I worry that perhaps some of these splinter-cells have hoped for exactly that, and have their own designs for how this fourteenth cycle must play out.

Suppose that there are other groups still, vying for control or power in the coming worlds. I cannot believe that that is so impossible a thing to have happen. For Mateus most definitely had his own goals, as did ExDeath, and as did Aerith and Golbez. But what could fuel these designs of theirs? Are they just unfounded lusts for control, or is there a method to their madness like there was to our own? Are these myriad factions all splinters from Dorgann Klauser's original vision, or were there greater things still that even I overlooked, that could encourage these many parties onward in their quest to gain control of the right to shape the future?

And what right have we to choose who shapes the future? Have you never pondered this, Scholar? This is why I turned on all you were: because you yourself had forgotten it. I do not pretend to hold Final Heaven as my goal any more. I'm too tired for it. My anger has burned itself out, and all that remains is bitterness and regret. That, and an unhealthy amount of fear. We became the monsters we so hated, and in it became caught up in something far worse. The dream, where did it come from? How did so many voices become silenced so quickly? Even if we get back to the waking world, who can say if we won't all suddenly begin to sleep again someday? And worse still, when we find ourselves there, what if we have sacrificed all we were to get there? You and I are monsters already, would we destroy all others in this feud as well?

Deep as my doubts now run, shallow were their fountains on that day that I found Valentine. Golbez and I cornered him in a decently quiet courtyard outside the Holy Temple. He was seated alone at beneath a Kuponut tree, seemingly asleep. In fact, he did not seem to be breathing when we approached, and it took Golbez' booming voice to wake him.

"Arise, Vincent Valentine. Your time is at hand."

"I'd rather die," he answered in a monotone, uninterested voice.

"Is that so?" I asked, more than a little peeved. "I'm afraid to break it to you then, mister, but you're already dead."

"That's the joke, friend. Or is your sense of humor deader than I am?"

"Aborted prior to birth, I'm afraid."

"What a waste."

"Enough prattle. We've come in the name of Lord Chaos to bring you in."

"Is that a fact?"

"What kind of a question is- Chaos has called you in, and you will be coming."

"I will? Why's that?"

"You were once an avatar of Chaos, were you not?"

"I was. Chaos helped me save the world. Twice."

"Well now Chaos is calling on you to return the favor."

"I'm guessing we're not going to save the world, now, are we?"

"Define 'Save'."

"Of course. When do we leave?"

"What, that's it? That's your response? No great defense? No needing to be dragged kicking and screaming back to Hell? Nobody popping out of the walls to your aid? Just, 'when do we leave'?"

"You okay or something? You seem . . . confused."

"Never mind. Get up. We leave immediately."

"Hold on, aren't you forgetting something?"

"Like?"

"A deal is offered to everyone who enters into the service of Chaos, are they not?"

"This is true," I said, "I'm guessing you want a cut of the earnings, then?"

"You could say that. I want to negotiate the terms of my employment."

"The terms of your employment have been settled already. Salvation of your world, twice, for services rendered to Chaos when and where He so desires."

"Then I wish to broker a third deal, in exchange for further services."

"You have yet to make good on your first, why should I, or Lord Chaos, believe you would honor a third agreement?"

"Having been Chaos on two separate occasions, I feel I can vouch for myself when I say that I would eagerly accept a fool's willingness to offer yet another service."

"Good thing that I am making this decision, then, and not Chaos."

"Your words wound me."

"Your words insult my intelligence."

"These are the terms I am willing to accept. You will make me an offer, or I will remain here until Chaos comes for me Himself."

"Ah, so there _is_ a trick to all this."

"Only if you so desire it. Offer me the same offer all others have been made, and I will go now without protest."

"Oh, very well, then. In the name of Chaos I offer you the chance to turn back the tides of fate. Whatever it is in time's flow that so deeply offends you, it is offered in the name of the Lord thy God the power to right that which went wrong. Is your anger so great that you can overcome history's writ, and turn back the hand of God? Show to your God what you will do for hatred, and for anger! Make with me now a covenant of service in exchange for this power. All you need to do is take my hand."

Vincent extended his own and, taking mine, pulled himself to his feet. The covenant was made, and for one moment it seemed as though the situation was at an end. However, as nothing was ever simple in World D, my relief came to a quick end when Vincent spoke.

"You should head out to the front gate. Now, if at all possible."

"What? Why would I want to go there?"

"Someone is waiting for you there."

"I'd ask, but I suppose some manner of cryptic answer awaits, so let's go."

"No, no cryptic answer. Galenth Dysley is waiting for you. Well, I don't think he's aware that it's you he's waiting for, but I believe this is something you'll find worth your while."

I did not immediately answer him. I was not sure what I could say. Galenth Dysley, or Barthandelus, as he was also known, was the man whose sins had kicked off my own descent into this quest. He had defeated Serah Farron, and left her mind so broken that The Scholar could pick it up and mold it how he so desired.

Was I actually angry with Dysley? Not at all. But I was still blinded by anger, and the thought of anyone who had been in any way related with that day I fell from grace was a target. A target so obvious I should have noticed it.

With Valentine and Golbez struggling to keep up, I strode toward the place where Dysley was meant to be. True to Valentine's word, the ex-Primarch was standing near the temple gates, greeting pilgrims on their way to seek audience with The Highest. My face flushed with anger at the sight of the man.

He seemed like nothing less than a grandfather, welcoming his children. Like a prophet or priest, extending his saintly arms to the sinners seeking redemption, like the Gran Kiltia offering enlightenment to they who sought it. He was kind, and unimposing to behold. The very image of the man filled me with a great loathing at the fact that I had enabled this murderer to stand here, and had delivered it to him with the greatest ease by placing nothing more than an unimposing girl on the platter.

I waited for the last of a group of white mages to scurry past before closing the distance between us. Dysley, of course, had no idea who I was. I imagine it must have been quite the surprise when I decked him in the face.

"By the Gods!" He cursed, "What madness is this?"

"Hello, Mr. Dysley."

"You have me at a disadvantage. I know not your name, madman."

"Learn it, and tremble. I am The Liar, the harbinger of Chaos."

"A demon, here, in so hallowed a place?"

"Don't act so surprised, sir, for you yourself are one as well."

"You would add insult to injury? I will call upon you a legion of seraphim, should you not leave at this very moment!"

"I'll be leaving, but you'll be coming with me."

"I doubt that. I would not follow a worm as vile as yourself."

"No? Not even in the name of the Lord Chaos?"

"Chas lost his hold on me! I proved my worth in Heaven beyond dispute!"

"That fight was a cheat! The girl never had any hope of winning!"

"And whose fault is this? Not mine, I assure you. Perhaps, Mr. Liar, you would like to take it up with the man who elected her for that battle?"

"I don't care whose fault it is. You're going to Hell, and you're going to serve Chaos."

"Heh. I'd like to see you try."

"You'll yet regret those words."

"On whose authority do you send me to Hell? Chaos has no sway over one so pure and holy and righteous as I."

"I do not act in the name of Chaos."

"Then who, in all of Heaven and Hell, could you possibly have authority from to send me to Hell? I work now with the Lady Cosmos to build up the framework of a New Heaven. Whose authority is there, that could challenge her own?"

"In the name of Cid Lufaine, God of the Gods of Gods, I banish you from this place, to the depths of Hell, to the service of Chaos, God of Discord!"

"HAWHAWHAWHAW! You? Act in the name of The Highest? Blasphem-," Barthandelus' face froze a moment as he felt the flames begin to creep from the hem of his robe upward. "What is this?"

"Mr. Dysley, welcome to the team. I'll see you in Hell."

"What, how, HOW is this possible?"

"Let us keep that a secret, for the time being, okay?"

"Y-you, GRAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"

At last Barthandelus burst into flames completely. He spent another minute screaming before being reduced to ashes, his being arriving moments later in Chaos' palace.

"And how will Chaos react to this?" Golbez asked.

"I'll cross that bridge when I reach it. Now, gentlemen, where can I find a man called Jecht?"


	13. Chapter 13 Nightmarescape

_**LOCATION: PENINSULA OF POWER, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: FIVE DAYS PRIOR TO CYCLE 14.**_

The Dragon has been silent for awhile now. He was not pleased with me, and I wonder if He has gone off hunting, as is His wont. What He hunts in this dead world I cannot say. I cannot even know if this world ever bore life. It bothers me that the Dragon lingers here like this. I know we two are bound together for a time, but I would have thought that one such as He would wander the worlds more. Come to think of it, there is still much I do not know about Him.

Was Shinryuu a prisoner of World D, as Cid was? The two are bound by The Beauty and the Beast, needing each other to survive, and yet I am not sure I know if one like the Divine Dragon can be bound to any place against His will. If the Lord Dragon were trapped in World D, who could ever have managed to do such a thing? What terrible magicks could be so great as to bind Shinryuu with chains even He could not break?

And what have we done, freeing Him once more upon the worlds?

I cannot bear to think on these things any longer. It hurts my mind to worry and fret like an old woman about these things. I will not drown in my sorrows. I have had my fill of all this whining. I will turn again to my memories and to this record, hoping to find a solution yet to the great evils I have unleashed on this world, and all others. I am a monster, make no mistake, every bit the horror that I have so much grown to hate, but I will at least die trying to undo the evils I have wrought.

Of these many evils, I remember now the day I arrived again in Hell. What's that? Am I skipping ahead? Maybe. Did I forget to count about Jecht? Oh, no, no I did not. Here's the catch:

"Why in the name of all the Gods is this man found in Hell? I thought he was at peace."

"Indeed," Golbez agreed, "but just as my just punishment for my crimes was to be surrounded by the ones I had hurt most in Heaven, Jecht has been assigned another punishment."

"A punishment? The man saved a world, did he not?"

"All who side with Chaos are punished," Valentine stated, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world, "It does not matter how many times you save the world."

"What good is there in saving a world, if yet you must lose your soul?"

"Is a soul really worth so much?" Golbez pondered, "In life I spent the flesh of men by the scores to attain what I swore I wanted most. Is a soul really that much more precious than the flesh?"

"The flesh rots, the spirit lingers," I stated as we made our descent.

"True, but in flesh a man believes he has all the time in the world. His destiny is yet his own, and his nature swifter changes."

"Whatever the greater might be, the law is what it is. To serve Chaos, whatever the purpose, ends in punishment. Yours will come, as surely as our own does."

"No one will stand to punish me when this is done," I spat, "That is the entire point. The Gods will not have hands to raise when this ends. No one will be left to punish me."

"You will punish yourself," Golbez said.

"And that will be the worst of all," Vincent affirmed.

"Indeed. I shiver in my boots, just considering it."

What DID worry me was the fact that, following the capture of Jecht, I would have to report back to Lord Chaos with all haste. No doubt He would be livid with the fact that I had brought Him Barthandelus instead of Celes, but I was _mostly_ sure I could smooth that over with Him, bringing in Golbez, Jecht, and Valentine.

By this point, it had, to my shame, slipped my mind that Golbez had yet to take his oath. I suppose that has worked out for the best, though. Whatever schemes Golbez and Aerith had in store, those are no longer in action. At least, I assume so. Five days yet remain, if we are to remain to the schedule.

And here is the confirmation I had been searching for not so long ago. The fourteenth cycle. We know when it must happen. Chaos knew it would happen while still inside World D. Cid Lufaine and Shinryuu must at some point have realized they were in a dream, and conspired to escape it, and to have this last battle, to determine once and for all the fate of all World A.

What was that, then? What had any of it ever been? If Cid and Shinryu ruled the dream, were they influencing us all along? Who can say? To these, who are Gods outside the dream, and are Gods who even the Gods feared, we are all but pawns, but puppets and toys.

What does Shinryu want? He has been feeding off this war for far too long. But, to what end? Why does He desire such power? For the sake of power alone? Or does something exist which frightens even the Divine Dragon? There must, for Omega slew Him, even in the dream He somewhat controlled, and _someone_ put Him in that dream to begin with.

What does Cid want? He is the other half of all this. Chaos exists because of Cid, as does Cosmos. Shinryu chose all of us because of Cid's intervention. What is it about this man, this Cid Lufaine, this God for whom even I am named, that marks Him as the master of our fates?

What of the shadow, then, who lurks behind this all? That being, or event, or whatever it might be, that sent us all into the dream? For Shinryu is adamant; it was not meant to go this way. The cycles of war kept World A largely at peace, and running, while they continued safely in World B. That was half the point, He claims. Cid wanted desperately to return to World A, but these boundaries have proven difficult to cross, even for ones like Shinryu and Cid.

But I digress. What these great ones plan is neither here nor there. My part is to examine these memories and hope I can recall some way to thwart Chaos and The Scholar before the time grows too late. And so, as I recall, I was on my way to meet with one Jecht and offer him power in the service of Lord Chaos.

Jecht was found in a place known only as Nightmare's Climax. Vincent claimed that the place had been built from all the nightmares ever had, and, to be sure, it was a place of terror. Anguished souls cried out from every corner as their worst fears came true before their very eyes, and the eyes of all others. The shames of all were exposed, exhibited, displayed, and flaunted before the multitude of sufferers herein.

Here there were men in masks, chasing maidens. There went men falling to their doom. Mothers' heads twisted on their necks to chase their children, while the space between women's legs became gaping maws, and their faces became grotesque, horrific, or sometimes the face of some forbidden paramour. A brother, a sister, a dog, a priest. If the sick and perverse undercurrents of the minds of men could dream it, here it was real.

The path we trod was knit from soiled bed-sheets, hedged with hands clawing up from the darkness to claim us, should we fail to mark carefully our way. According to Valentine and Golbez, Jecht was to be found over the next rise. Though relatively near to our position, it seemed far too distant for comfort, as we soon learned, to our great displeasure, that we ourselves were not immune to the taunting of this distorted world.

Vincent was quickly made the world's first prey. From the middle of the road emerged the figures of a man and a woman, entwined in a lover's embrace. Closer expression revealed they were corpses, rotting even as they mated. The woman called out Valentine's name, but, even rotting, it was clear that the monstrous male was not Valentine.

It was a thin man, with hair pulled back in a tail, a broken pair of spectacles on its brow. As his lips fell off between passionate zombie kisses, a sneer could be made out. He pulled back his head and gave out an ecstatic cry, even as his skull fell from his neck, rolling down his shoulders and into the ground.

A new head rose in its place, and with it ribbons of pink flesh, covering the rot that had been the man and woman. The woman was attractive enough, her breasts full, her hair dark, her figure curved. The man resembled Valentine, almost completely, yet still it was evidently not him. He was older, broader of shoulder, firmer of muscle, and harder of face. Around his throat was a scarf as crimson as adultery.

"Dad?" Valentine gasped, forgetting his frigid composure for one single moment. That was all the nightmares needed. Feeding on his deep-buried emotions, the woman slid a hand beneath her self, and lifted up a child.

"Your seed," she murmured, letting it fall from her hand. As it fell, the child grew into a man, though few there are who would ever call this creature a man. He was fair to behold, beautiful, almost as though a maiden. Long silvery hair fell from his brow, and a smile that could win a man's allegiance graced his lips.

Slowly the hair darkened, and the features shifted. The man looked less like the son of the zombie, and more like a brother to Valentine. Or perhaps . . . a son. Around him rose other figures in the darkness. A man in a white suit, surrounded by a group of persons carrying picture boxes, snapping photograph after photograph.

The man in white hailed the dark-who-had-been-light as a hero, and called for his father and mother. From the shadows emerged the woman, and by her side some shade's imitation of Valentine. Both of them were beaming, radiant with pride in their son, the hero.

Then, quite suddenly, they all burst into flame, and the man's hair went white again. So close now, he seemed. He extended a hand toward Valentine, and asked, "Which monster bred me . . . ? My mother . . . or my father . . . ?"

"I am not your father." Valentine stated, striding through the nightmare, his composure regained. "I do not carry the stain of the blood you spilt upon my hands."

"Then say that to my face."

"I will, when next I see it."

The dream fell away, and for a moment we were allowed to continue onward in peace. At least, we were granted the illusion of peace. What a surreal thought, now that I dwell on it! A dream-land within a dream-world!

Next to be tormented was Golbez. From all sides rose up spikes, and on them were mounted faces more familiar to me. The heads of Cecil, Rosa, and Kain all emerged, as did the head of a man so like to Golbez, and a woman so like to Cecil, that it was impossible not to see them as his parents.

A shadow emerged from their midst, clad in darkened armor, and barred our way. It looked something like a Judge, but from the sudden tension emanating from Golbez I knew it could not be that simple. Were to the Gods that it had been a mere judge. Judges a man could handle, but these specters?

"The task is done," The man in shadow said, "_brother_." It added, almost lovingly.

"_No_," Golbez quailed, stepping backward.

"What's wrong, brother? The task is done! We've won! They're all dead. Nothing left on this planet can oppose us anymore. Everything has gone exactly as you've planned. The world is ready for colonization."

"You are NOT my brother!" Golbez cried, terror in his voice.

"You wound me, brother. Come, take my hand. It's not too late. We've leveled this world. The giant is ours. Let's go home and see our uncle."

"Fusoya?"

"The old man won't last more than a minute after us," the shadow man laughed. It was a cold laugh, loveless and vicious. "But hey, here's an idea, brother. Why do we still bend the knee to Zemus?"

"Zemus?"

"Of course, Zemus. Oh, sure, he raised us, taught me the sword and you the spell, made us the men we are today, but think about it, brother: He's just one more old man. Trapped, for all his anger, in a glass jar. We off him, too, and we can _rule_ this world together!"

"What good would it do! We are murderers! Monsters! No man would have us rule!"

"Have you gone soft? They won't have a choice. And here's the best part- when the others arrive, we'll be long dead. We can raise up children, Lunarians, purer blood than our own, train them as Zemus trained us. They'll kill us like we killed him, that's how we'll know they're strong. And when the others come, when the Blue Man and his Blue Maidens come, when the Hag and her silver haired spawn and brothers arrive, when the mighty World-eating spined monsters arrive, they will find no mere humes, no mere Lunarians. No, our seed will grow mighty, yours, mine, intermingling in later generations, expounding on the teachings of Zemus, and when the others come, what they will find here are GODS, and the heavens will fall before our sons, yours and mine."

"This is madness! None of this is real!"

"The sons of Golbez, the dark wizard, and the sons of the dark knight, his brother," the shadow said, removing his helmet. To our horror, the face was not the one we had all come to expect. It was not the youthful good-looks of the most renowned Paladin and one of the most beloved Seraphim in all of Heaven. It was not the face of Cecil Harvey, but the face of Theodor.

Which meant, in this vision, Golbez, the dark lord, the mastermind, the integral pawn in the plans Lord Zemus was no more and no less than Cecil Harvey, the White Knight, the favored son, the only man who could stand against evil at that moment.

"Are you ready to rule the heavens, brother?" Theodor mocked Golbez.

"I am not this man. I am not the man I was. None of this is real."

"You serve Chaos," the dream turned accuser, "You are me."

"Am I?" Golbez asked, his voice cold and terrible, as he strode to the figure. "How very convenient," was all he said as he stretched out his hands and strangled the phantom, whose death was all too realistic.

After it was done, and the nightmare dissipated, we continued onward. Now I knew whose turn would be next, and I did not relish the thought. The nightmares, as it happens, do not pay heed to what a man does and does not relish.

From all around us rose up shadowy hands, as if to bar our way. I wanted desperately to run, then and there, but I found that I dared not take the risk. The hands clasped one another and began to swirl in a little fog until they were neatly blended. From the midst of them emerged my son.

"The time has come, old man. Time to settle the score."

"Ffamran?"

"Ffamran's dead, codger, but fret not. I'll be sending you off to see him soon enough, or my name's not Balthier."

"Your name isn't Balthier. You don't have a name. You're just a nightmare."

"Not satisfied? A more suitable form, then."

The figure of my son grew older, then bent over slightly, from an only too familiar pain in the back. Spectacles appeared in his hand, and a beard graced his chin. He grinned at me, this doppelganger, before putting a hand to the small of his back and correcting his posture.

"What, so now you are me? I am not afraid of myself."

"I'm not here to frighten you."

"Then step aside. I need to pass."

"You need to stand your ground."

"Why is that?"

"Because I will kill you if you don't."

And like that, my doppelganger shattered, leaving a duplicate in his place, wielding a sword. A sword he swung with surprising speed. I managed to pull back my head only moments before he lopped it off. I took a step backward, obviously confused.

"What kind of dream is this?"

"One you're not supposed to wake up from. You are the dream, and I am the reality. You claim yourself some sort of decent, cunning man, who would free the slaves from their slavers. You are no such thing."

"Is that a fact?" I asked, ducking beneath another swipe from the blade. I began to sweat. This situation was dire, and as I wondered why Valentine and Golbez did not see fit to help me, I realized, to my horror and dismay, that they were not there.

"You are a monster. Don't you remember the funny men with no arms? They were Gods, and you hated them. So what did you do? You tricked one of them into helping you become one yourself. Oh, hey, look where we are now!"

In desperation, I managed to find the courage to fight back. Feeling my heart leaping in my throat, I landed a punch on my own face, and found that it shattered like glass. The pieces began, just as swiftly as they'd broken, to repair themselves.

I laughed at myself, then took another swing. I ducked, and punched myself in the stomach. As I shattered I grabbed a piece of my own glass and clutched it in my hand, not worrying about the pain it caused as it sank into my flesh.

"Chaos will help me to bring down the Gods. Peace will be had at last."

"You are a fool if you believe that."

"Am I? Which part?"

"All of it. Chaos, help you? Chaos has promised to help you, and so many others. Now tell me, how can Chaos keep all these promises?"

"I don't see what you mean."

"Then you are blind as well as a fool. And you fight like a lame man."

It was true. I have never been good with a sword. Glass is a poor match for steel, even dream-glass against dream-steel. I had more points than that, too. At the time I didn't want to believe it, but looking back, I had a point.

"Speak, then, ere I cut you down."

"Big words, for a lame, blind fool! Chaos promises this one he will have his son back, and promises that one she will crush time beneath her heel, and promises that one he will sail the stars and snuff them out, while promising another that he can rule as a God, while promising this and that. In the end, the promises conflict, and even a God of discord cannot make them work together."

"You are the worst sort of nightmare, come to warn me, and provide comfort in this dire time!" I mocked.

"No, I was the warning, the nightmare is one more unsettling still. For we looked within your soul, Cidolfas Demen Bunansa, and we discovered something there that frightened we who are fear embodied. Behold your nightmare, and despair!"

With that, my clone shattered, and in his place stood nothing more than a mirror. Expecting a horrific revelation, I approached the reflection as slowly as I dared. To my eternal horror, what I saw in that mirror was nothing more than my own face, as it really was.

I was gaunt, and I was old. I was petty, and miserable. And as I stared into the mirror, I realized there was no trick. The vile, conniving, slimy man who greeted my unwilling eyes was none other than myself, exactly the way I was. I was a traitor, and a usurper. I was a man who pretended at power and sought to control the lives of others. I was the monster I had hated.

I reached a hand to the mirror, and noted how much I looked just like them. My temples were white as Previa's, my eyes as darkened behind my spectacles as Pollendina's. My face wrinkled like Kramer's, my beard dropping like Marquez', and my lips smug like those of Margrace. I was the men I hated, the enemies I had loved and fought, and the horror did not wish to end there.

I stank of brimstone, the clawing reek of those who stood to close to Hell-fire. My light was like iron, and my wings blackened. Contact with Chaos was more evident on my flesh than it could be on any other soul damned to this wretched fate of mine. Chaos' semblance could be seen in my own, and others' still. It was written plainly on my face, the name of every man with whom I conspired to betray the other.

And as my horror grew, letters appeared in the mirror. Letters which spelled out the words "Yours is a nightmare from which there is no waking." And oh! How true those words have proven! For here I am, beyond the world of Dreams that was World D! Birthed from the sleep of World C, and back to this waste called World B and even now I am haunted by the truths that mirror displayed! For I am become as foul and rank as Cid Previa, as manipulative as Cid Lufaine, as abominable as Chaos, and as power hungry as Shinryu! Look! Look all ye who receive this word, and know that this is the most miserable of all the villains in this war! For I am the monster unsung, and mine is the face they all shall never know.

The mirror exploded before my eyes as a hand reached through it and pulled me into the unknown. Before I could react, a fist followed the hand, and robbed me of my senses with one quick, sharp blow.

When I came to, I felt my hand clasped by another. To my great alarm, tendrils of fire were already receding as Jecht let go of my hand. Golbez had served witness, while Valentine had forged the covenant's words and my flesh had sealed it.

"Sleepin' Beauty finally woke up, eh?" Jecht taunted, pulling me to my feet, grasping the hand he'd only just released.

"That is . . . unfortunate," Golbez stated.

"You! What, what happened?"

"We have provided you with protection from the wrath of Chaos when we arrive at His castle," Valentine answered, as though his words somehow made sense.

"I do not believe-," I started.

"Then mark well," Golbez interrupted. "You have just forged a covenant with a man that Lord Chaos Himself has not sent you to get. Two, to be honest. Jecht and Barthandelus. I wonder who it is that sent you then, to call for them? The Emperor, no doubt."

"H-,"

"Do not seek to excuse yourself. Would you know how I know? And how I know how you know? When we arrive at Chaos' castle, you will be dispatched to retrieve two more slaves, and, afterward, you will meet with me on the Tower of Sorrow. There it will be explained."

"You're a small'n, Liar. You and all yer ilk're lookin' ta spin the world this way and that, well guess what?" Jecht snarled, leaning in close, "We gotta plan of our own."

"What is to stop me from telling Chaos all of this the minute we reach His door?"

"What is to stop you from telling Him anything? What is to stop _us_ from telling Him all _you_ have done?"

"What are your terms, then?"

"You keep silent on all of this, and so will we."

"And watch as you all plot to tear down what I am building?"  
>"Our plan is yours, you can be assured."<p>

"I am not."

"And you never will be. Now, have we got an accord?"

"Have I any choice?"

"No more than any of us ever have. This is the game we all play. You have lost this turn. Are you ready to go again?"

"As you will," I groaned, wishing I could be more dead than I already was.


	14. Chapter 14 Dialogue and Revelation

_**LOCATION: Peninsula of Power, World B.**_

_**OCCASION: Five days prior to the fourteenth cycle.**_

"Lord Chaos, what a pleasure it is to be in your presence again," I said, even though it was not.

"Cidolfas Demen Bunansa, Liar! Well met. Tell me, now, why should I not rip you in twain?"

"If you had intended on disposing of me now, you would have done so already, I assume?"

"Circumstances have changed."

"Well then, why would you want to tear me apart?"

"I do not tolerate betrayal well. I did not send you to fetch Jecht, nor Barthandelus. Yet here they are, and where is Celes Chere? I am . . . very angry with you."

"You seem incredibly calm."

"Is there any time a God is more terrifying?"

"Are we here to mince words, or are we here to talk about the coming storm? There are wars to be prepared, my Lord."

"There are wars, yes. One I will lose, to win the other. But how can I expect things to go even remotely as I have planned, if you are more chaotic than even I?"

"You are a God of Chaos, shouldn't my acts be seen as virtue, not sin, in your eyes?"

"Are we here to mince words, or will you yet explain to me? There are wars to be prepared, my Liar."

"As you will. Jecht is an excellent addition to your roster for the thirteenth cycle. He is no demon. He is one of the good men who suffers righteously in Hell. His was a soul sold, never given. He does not want to fight this war, not at heart. But he relishes battle, and if you give him a chance to change his fate, he will jump at it."

"Is that all?"

"Lord Chaos, Golbez was chosen on similar grounds, was he not? Golbez hates himself more than anything, and consorting with the rest of the demons who will pledge themselves to you will make him feel vile. Consider Jecht as an attachment, then. And if there is in-fighting, they will kill themselves with little effort from whatever dogs Cosmos chooses."

"Very well. Your head and shoulders remain your own for this night more. Now, tell me, what am I to do with Barthandelus?"

"Lord Chaos," I began.

"That is enough of 'Lord' this. You are the Liar, and I am Chaos. In life all who should have loved and respected me betrayed and destroyed me. Whyever should I crave respect now that I am dead?"

"As you will. Barthandelus has been reserved for . . . the fourteenth cycle."

"Ah, yes, the last war. Have you some ideas with regards to it?"

"Not many, to tell you the truth. I was hoping you could shed some light on the subject for me. How is this cycle to happen? You will lose the thirteenth cycle, won't you?"

"A loss does not change the way things stand. I intend to convince them, however, that it does."

"How so?"

"I, myself, will lose the last cycle, yes. But you need to understand that there were twelve cycles before this one which is coming. The previous cycle Cosmos lost."

"If She lost, why do things stand as they do?"

"The war is much bigger than you think, my poor Liar. Oh, so very much bigger. So long as Cosmos and I remain, the war will never end. Cosmos survived the war, and One greater than we will yet begin the cycle anew. So I will perish in this cycle, and bring the war to an apparent end."

"An _apparent_ end?"

"Yes. I need a way to survive my own demise, a way to live after the end of this horrible flesh. A means of existing when my own existence must be snuffed out. Only then will They show themselves and make the end of all this farce apparent."

"They?"

"Oh, you poor, misinformed man. The Beauty and The Beast. My dear father, Cid Lufaine, and Shinryu, the Divine Dragon. The two of them are the real perpetuators of this war. A fact few men know, Liar, and a fact your tongue would be wise to guard. What is their purpose? I thought I knew it, but there are so many things that seem . . . wrong to me. If I can fool them, along with all of Cosmos' dogs into believing I am gone, then I can tear down Heaven and Hell, overthrow the Gods, and set right all that they have ever set wrong."

"Isn't it obvious what has been missing? Chaos, the answer has been before you all this time. Who are you, truly Chaos?"

"I am who I am, Chaos, God of Dischord, son of God, Cid Lufaine, of course."

"Is that all? No, Chaos, you are more, so very, very much more than just the Son of God."

"Explain yourself, Liar."

"Chaos, you are freedom. You are not bound by the fetters of order, and are the slave to no demon, to no God, to no creed, nor law. You are random, unpredictable, and unfathomable. You are Garland of Corneria one moment, traitor to the crown, lover of the princess, and mortal foe of the Paragon. In the next moment, who are you, Chaos? You are Vincent Valentine, former Turk of the Shin-Ra electric company, vampire, and twice over savior of the world. You are the Earl Tyrant of Gaudium, master of the world! You are his loyal aide, Oscha, of the unlimited, unrestricted potential! And again, you are Chaos of another sort, who straddles the world beneath him, driving fear into even the dragons of Spelvia.

"You are more than all of this! How could one so grand and terrifying be so blind!" I cried, taken by a madness of my own. At this moment I was his, so completely, so utterly given over to my rage and need for revenge that I could not see what I was doing, "You are the Emperor of Palamecia, and the Cloud of Darkness! You are the one Clad in the Dark, and the Scourge of Enuo! You are the God of Magic, the Compressor of Time, and all Sin made flesh! You are the pride of Gestahl, and the sorrow of Landis! You are Lord of the fal'Cie, spawn of Jenova, and death of Terra!

"Who are you, Lord Chaos? That is the question so many have wondered when your presence was made known to them. Who is this man, that shakes the Heavens with his fury, and stands above the Gods, to bring them down amongst the men that they enslave? Who is this, that gives all men fear from birth, and whose armies encircle the cosmos with lovers' embrace?

"The question we have all asked, from the beginning, is, 'who is Chaos?' but now I say that this question was wrong! I realize now, filled with my longing for justice, for vengeance, with the desire to cast down they who, hating the Gods, seek to become them themselves, that 'who is Chaos?' has always been the wrong question. The true question is not, 'who is Chaos?' but rather, who are we? So now I put it to you, Chaos, who am I? Who are we? Who are these, the masses who, reviling you as a devil, greedily accept your power when it is convenient to them? Who are these who, naming you a monster, are revered as saints only by your grace? Who, Chaos, who are we?"

Chaos sat silent a moment, pondering my words. I would to God that I had never spoken them. Foolish is too kind a word for what I was at this moment. And a name, however insulting, does not turn back the waves. I gave Chaos His power at this moment, I made Him so much more at this time. Before He had never fully understood what He was doing, making bonds with Garland, and with Vincent and all the others who had worn His face. At this moment I made that clear, and forever changed the course we might have taken.

"Who are you, then?" Chaos asked with bated breath.

"We are Chaos. Each and every one of us. We are Chaos. Any man can be you, at any time. Don't you see? We are Chaos! Everyone has the capacity to yield himself to you, because you are all things. You are not restrained by the limits and orders of other Gods, and so all men do your will. And any man may give rise to you. Any man may become you. In one day Garland fell from grace. In one day Vincent's life was ruined and a monster born. In one day that same monster went mad from the simple truth. In one day a man can become Chaos, and why is that?

"Because we. Are. Chaos!"


	15. Chapter 15 Endings and Beginnings

_**LOCATION: PENINSULA OF POWER, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: FOUR DAYS PRIOR TO CYCLE 014.**_

_** DO YOU SEE IT, LIAR? THERE, LOOK CLOSELY,**_ Shinryu says, drawing my attention off to the horizon. In the direction of Crescent, where the frozen remains of the Gurgu Volcano remains, there are lights in the sky. The ground is shaking, even here. The world itself is heaving. Shinryu has informed me that the Volcano houses the gate to World C, and that these shakes are the end of the battle between Cid Lufaine and Omega.

"I see it. World D has ended, then?"

_**UNDOUBTEDLY. IT WAS OVER THE MOMENT OMEGA ENGAGED CID.**_ Shinryu curls Himself around me, pretending not to be upset over my treatment of Him earlier. He has a point, though, once Omega arrived in Cid's throne room, World D was over. I hate knowing that, to be honest. I hate knowing that the dream was a lie, because that was The Scholar's belief. It wasn't, not at first, but before we parted ways in World D it had taken hold of his heart completely. And why shouldn't it, if it was true? Nevertheless, the admission is a painful one.

"Who will win?"

_**OMEGA WILL DEFEAT HIM,**_ Shinryu assured, _**SHE IS POWERFUL, AND CID IS ONLY GROWING WEAKER THERE. BESIDES, THE OLD MAN WILL LIKELY SURRENDER IN THE END. HIS MIGHT IS MINE, BUT HIS WILL TO FIGHT DWINDLES LIKE A CANDLE IN A STORM.**_

"You don't place much confidence in God, do you?"

_**WHY SHOULD I TRUST A GOD I MADE WITH MY OWN HANDS?**_

"If you dislike Him so much, why did you make Cid? There is much you don't reveal, Shinryu. Why did you grant Cid Lufaine all this power, if you feel He is going to fail you in this war? And what exactly is YOUR story, anyway?"

_**MY STORY?**_

"Every person involved in this coming storm has made it personal to themselves. Omega rages because of all that we did wrong in the Dream. The warriors who Cosmos summons will want to go home. Cosmos Herself has gone astray, and wants to put the world into an order of Her making. The Scholar has his part, and I have mine. We all have our stakes, our hopes, our dreams, our wants for this battle. What about YOU, Shinryu? Where do you come from? What do you want out of all this?"

_**I AM HUNGRY. I NEEDED FOOD, AND YOU HAVE ALL BEEN SO WILLING TO PROVIDE IT. THIS WAR HAS NOURISHED ME FOR A TIME. IT HAS EVEN ENTERTAINED ME. I AM WEARY OF IT, NOW, THOUGH, AND WHEN IT ENDS, WILL LOOK FOR BETTER . . . CATTLE.**_

At this, I must laugh. Shinryu does not seem to find it as amusing as I do, and rumbles His desire to know what I could possibly find so funny. I am only too happy to explain. "Do you know what we say of you, Lord Dragon? That you are beyond our comprehension. That your power and majesty is so _fucking much_ that no human mind could ever conceive of it. And now it happens that this description is so completely true. I, for all the loathsome, horrid things I am, could never hope to comprehend a monster of your magnitude."

_**IS IT MONSTROUS TO FEED ONESELF? I MUST EAT.**_

"We tell stories in hushed voices, of your war on Omega, and how you nobly seek to destroy the destroyer herself. Turns out you're just looking for table-scraps."

_**IN ORDER TO SURVIVE, YOU CONSUME OTHER LIVES, DO YOU NOT? YOU EAT MEAT, FRUITS, VEGETABLES, AND GRAINS. YOU AND I ARE NOT SO DIFFERENT.**_

"Aren't we, though? I am just a sad little man, who has been broken beneath the weight of his sins. You are a mouth with powers that even Gods fear to challenge. And why shouldn't They? You MAKE men into Gods. And for all your power and majesty, your only motivation is HUNGER. Oh, we both eat, you and I, but to feed myself is not the end-all-be-all of my existence."

_**MORAL WHININGS AND PRETENTIOUS PREACHINGS, NOTHING MORE. I AM HUNGRY, AND I FEED. WITHOUT FOOD, LIFE ENDS. SUCH IS THE ORDER OF THINGS. IT IS SET, AND EVEN I CANNOT CHANGE THAT.**_

"Then you are truly the weakest and lowliest of all, aren't you? Look at you! All the power in the world, and you cannot change this one thing? I content myself to know that I do not condemn the souls of man to suffer endless war just so I can feed myself. I content myself to know that, were the choice between my own life and the countless lives I stood to ruin, I would gladly cast my own away. That is why I am merely a monster, and you are one of incomprehensible levels."

_**ARE YOU SO HOLY, THEN? I DO NOT BELIEVE YOUR WORDS, LIAR. YOU SHOULD KNOW WHAT IT IS TO STARVE WITH A HUNGER THAT NOT EVEN REALITIES CAN SATISFY IT, TO THIRST SO MUCH THAT A THOUSAND STARS COULD NEVER SLAKE IT, TO LUST SO POWERFULLY THAT NOTHING CAN EVER HOPE TO GRANT YOU RELEASE. THIS IS MY FATE. I AM MORE VICTIM THAN MONSTER, AND I DO NOT BELIEVE YOU WOULD BE ABOVE DOING WHAT I DO, IF YOU FOUND YOURSELF IN MY SKIN.**_

__"A victim? Chaos said He was a victim, too, and soon all worlds will cower before Him. A victim? Omega was a victim, and now She is grinding God Himself beneath Her heel. Cosmos was a victim, and She gave you the idea to enslave these souls for your food. The Scholar was victim, and he conspired to rend reality in twain. I was a victim, and I gave Chaos the power He needed all along. Victims are murderers waiting to happen, Shinryu. Victim is just a monster in embryo. If you are a victim, I shudder to think what shall happen when you take your own vengeance."

_**THERE IS NONE UPON WHOM I COULD TAKE THIS VENGEANCE. I ONLY HUNGER. HUNGER DOES NOT MAKE ONE A MONSTER. I NEEDED FOOD, I BUILT A FARM. YOU CANNOT TELL ME THERE WERE NO FARMS IN YOUR EMPIRE, DOCTOR.**_

"Oh, to be sure, there were farms, orchards, and more. But I did not force the pigs to fight before I ate them. And for certain, we would not eat a pig that could protest. These we clothed, employed, and welcomed in our midst."

_**YOU RAISED THEM TO EAT THEM. YOU PLANTED, REAPED, AND SOWED. THIS IS NO DIFFERENT.**_

"Are you so certain, Lord Dragon? These men die and die and die and die, and all of it is your doing. Consider carefully, the pigs you've raised have become much more dangerous than you could have imagined. One of them became Omega and KILLED you. Oh, sure, in a dream, but She remains Omega, this sow, and the dream won't hold Her for long. You made one of the hogs a God, and even you cannot take that away from Him now. And that God? His children gave rise to Chaos, who is a threat no man could hope to estimate. And now the pigs, fighting among themselves, have realized there's a farmer who's been eating them as they go. You have set in motion things you cannot possibly stop, Shinryu. If Omega does not stop you, Chaos will. And if Chaos and Omega fail, Cid will stop you. You will never leave World B."

_**WORDS, LIAR, THAT IS WHAT THESE ARE. WORDS. WHAT EVEN MAKES YOU SO SURE THAT I AM HERE?**_  
>"Are you a coward, then, to run from the massacre you started?"<p>

_**DOES A MAN PAY HEED TO THE SHIT OF A GNAT? NO MORE SO SHALL I CARE ABOUT YOU AND YOUR ILK.**_

"Gnats, you say? Nay, for no man has ever depended so completely upon gnats. Do you know what I think _really_ frightens you, Shinryu? It isn't this war, to be certain, nor is it Omega's wrath. You know what you really fear? Peace. What if, in the end, the war really _does_ end, and you are left without food? You will run elsewhere, I am assured, but are you so certain that you will ever find a man like Cid Lufaine, or a pawn like Cosmos, so ready to sacrifice lives to you in endless battle?

"What if you cannot find another war? How will you survive then? Bitter, hungry, and afraid, you will slink off into a world of horrors and terrors where no man will ever find you, and yet they shall. Omega has taught us this much, hasn't She? When they know who you are, and what you are, they will kill you. Make no mistake, they will starve you, and when you are at your weakest, they will kill you, once and for all."

_**WHO, PRAY TELL? EVEN IF THEY KNOW WHO I AM, NONE HERE WILL OPPOSE ME. I TRANSCEND YOU ALL IN SPLENDOR AND RADIANCE. MY GLORY IS BEYOND THE BRIGHTEST THING YOU COULD EVER IMAGINE. HOW COULD YOU LOWLY WORMS EVER HOPE TO DEFEAT ME?**_

"Omega defeated you, and there will come one greater than Her, still."

_**THERE IS NONE GREATER THAN I. EVEN YOUR GODS KNELT BEFORE ME IN THE DREAM. OMEGA WILL FAIL, HER HUMANITY BETRAYING HER IN THE END. NOTHING IS GREATER THAN I, THE LORD DRAGON. NOTHING.**_

"Words, Shinryu, that is what these are to me. I have always been a skeptical man. Now I begin to wonder: if the Gods were not so great as I had believed, is He who is Greater than God any better? The world disappoints, and the Doctor lies. Shall we be going?"

_**TO SEE THE GOD OF GODS OF GODS? LET US.**_

Our exchange terminated, we set off from the Peninsula in direction of Mt. Gurgu. Or is it Mt. Gulg? I can never quite be certain. It all depends on the accent it seems. As we walk, my mind turns again to the events which transpired not so long after I had left Chaos in His throne room.

Chaos had dispatched me to retrieve more persons than Golbez had originally suspected. I was to find for Him the remainder of His avatars: Earl Tyrant, Oscha, and another Chaos. Chaos also wanted me to pick up one Sephiroth, and one Kuja. Sephiroth because his single-mindedness would blind him to the entire cause and make him an early abandoner, and Kuja because he had been a powerful force for Chaos, right up to the moment he repented on his deathbed. Chaos hoped that the penance had been sincere, and that it would allow for quite the broken base of support this cycle.

Chaos had spoken of others he wanted. Delita Heiral, a brave and gallant knight, Shiroi, a demon swordsman, a Dark Queen called Mira, a Dark King, and a man called Gaius. The list was lengthy, truth be told. I was not at all certain why He wanted me gone so long, but I knew better than to question Chaos to His face.

As I was leaving the castle, I had the great pleasure of being accosted by the Emperor and his whore on the way. Mateus shoved me against a wall, fingers clawing into my throat, and fire in his eyes. From the way he spoke, it was evident he was upset about _something_.

"I do not recall ordering you to send Ex-Death and his bitch here, Liar." Hissed the Emperor.

"I do not recall you saying I couldn't." I managed, gasping for breath and still somewhat stunned by the attack. The Emperor was thinking, Gods only know what. He must have believed I was still the same weakling I had been when I had entered into Chaos' service. On that note he was almost right. I had yet to grow stronger, but I had grown _smarter_ and _angrier_. "You worthless mongrel," I gasped, sliding a knife from within my robes into his stomach. The pain must have been something fierce, as he lurched backward, loosening his grip.

I decided a change of situations would suit the change of allegiance just fine. So I wrapped my own fingers around his throat and pressed him into the wall. "Hurts, doesn't it? Did you forget about pain, melted in that puddle? You were like a _God_ once, Mateus, and look at you now, your wind-pipe being crushed by a Cid."

Ultimecia's own slender claws encircled my neck, sinking into the soft flesh. "Release him," she purred.

"Not just yet," I growled, my disdain for the pair pushing me on, emboldened by the fact that, however high the pain, I could not die. "Heed my words, Emperor, I am not your dog. I am no man's dog. When this is all done, I'll cast you down with all the Gods and _laugh._" I drove my fingers deeper into that soft, white flesh of his and then, seized upon by a cruel whim, I slammed my own skull against his. It hurt more than I imagined it would, but it must have hurt him, too. Enjoying the sensation, I drove my knee upward into his crotch, once, twice, three times, until Ultimecia managed to pull me off of him.

"You forget yourself!" She hissed at me. "But I won't forget this! Your pain will come, soon."

"Your pain will come _now,_" I growled, leaping from my position. I pounced on her like some feral beast and began to pound her face again and again and again, blinded by my own anger. What I was thinking at that time is hard to say. Every blow I landed I saw something else. The Scholar and his rejecting me. The rest of Obsidian and their being cowed by his personality. Barthandelus crushing that poor, sweet girl I sent to fight him. That poor, sweet girl cowering before him. The Scholar comforting her, corrupting her, fucking her, molding her into whatever he wanted. The shrouded form of Cid Lufaine, sitting on His throne, controlling all the world and letting it rot as He did so. The Gods, and their slavery of all. The simple-minded masses who kissed the shit on the bottom of the feet of the Gods all the same.

In a blur of red I found myself on the floor. Dazed, I did not realize what had happened until after someone dragged me to my feet. I stood, shakily, face to face with Jecht. His bristles were almost touching my chin, his breath warm on my skin.

"Well, well, what have we here? Looks like a squabble if I ever saw 'n. What to do with the three o' you, eh?"

"You, worm, will be reporting this scum to Lord Chaos," Mateus commanded, trembling with fury.

"Damn straight I will. Problem is, which scum to report first? The one in the crown? The one in the specs? Or the one in the dress? So much scum, if you take my meaning?"

"You _dare_ threaten me?"

"Mister, I don't know who the fuck you even are. You're no one to me, get it? So you two keep your mouths shut and get the hell outta my sight, or Chaos'll hear all about this."

The Emperor glared at him a moment, considering his options. When, at last, it dawned on him that Jecht wouldn't be the sort to joke about this, he sniffed and said, "Come, Ultimecia, let us be going. The worms will be returning to the dirt for now. We eagles are suited to better fare than this anyway."

"As you say," she said, wiping blood from her brow. They turned and left.

When they were out of earshot, Jecht shook me and shouted, "The hell was all that about?"

"He pissed me off. You're starting to, come to think of."

Jecht backhanded me for the comment. "Chaos sent me to make sure you behave this time around. Lucky for you, I don't give a damn about behavior. But if you're dead, you're no use to any of us at all. So let's be sure and walk out of here, nice and calm, huh?"

His gaze allowed for no argument. "As you wish," I muttered begrudgingly.

"Go get your shit. We meet at the castle gates in an hour."

And that was what I did. An hour thereafter I found myself before the castle gates, leaving for an adventure of proportions I could never hope to comprehend. I felt as though I were leaving Baron, Cecil and Kain, headed for Mist and a quest the likes of which Angels would sing forever thereafter. The only question that nagged at me, as Jecht and I strode past the impaled souls beyond the gate, was who, between us, was Cecil, and who was Kain.


	16. Chapter 16 Return of the King

_**LOCATION: GURGU MOUNTAIN RANGE, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: FOUR DAYS UNTIL CYCLE 014.**_

The sun will be setting soon. I have wondered, once or twice, since getting here, what manner of star it is, that this world orbits. As far as I have seen, this is not just a planet, floating in the heavens. It's a contained space. The ends of the world don't loop, like they should. It's as if there are invisible walls sealing us in, forever.

I've come to think of World B as a cavern, of sorts. And why should I not? In this world, the mouth of this volcano, called Gurgu, leads _downward_ to World C. World C, according to Shinryu, is where all the . . . the bodies? The souls? The minds? Let us say _personas_ of they who had inhabited World A rest. It is in World C that the throne of Cid Lufaine is, where His bodies are as well. World C has a door at the end of it, which opened into World D, the Dream. World D is a dream reality sustained by Cid Lufaine, and fleshed out by the suspended _personae_ trapped in World C.

Nevertheless, it seems a logical procession, doesn't it? I go down a staircase in World B, and find myself in World C. From World C I go down another flight of stairs and through a door and find myself in World D. All of this, then, is, after a manner of speaking, _under_ World A. But what, exactly, _is_ World A? I have been lead to believe that it is the collective of all the worlds we called "Life" in World D. So which, of those many planets, are we underneath?

And how can these many worlds coincide? For the rules of my world did not coincide with the rules of The Scholar's. And the rules of our worlds were very dissimilar from the rules of others in that dream. In the dream we said it was the doing of The Gods. But what if there _are_ no Gods in World A? Cid Lufaine was God of Gods of Gods in the dream, but in World A He was just a man. Shinryu claims He does not hail from any of the worlds in World A. And, aside from His eternal hunt of Omega, nothing is known of His purpose, or His origin.

Shinryu and I have come to the foot of the volcano, to greet God. He will soon be emerging from World C, leaving the many behind, to prepare for the war which will decide their fate. The dream is over, we know that now. Omega has prevailed, there can be no denying it. The sleepers are now on the edge of a knife. The war must end, and they must waken, else they shall sleep dreamlessly from now until the end of eternity.

The mountain erupts again, but neither of us flinch. As long as Shinryu stands, so shall I. And as long as I stand, so shall He. So what, then, is a little lava between us? This eruption is the last, anyway. At the mountain's peak, high, high above us, I can already make out the figure, descending. The flames whip about Him, yet He is untouched. His body shines, even from this distance.

_**A FOOLISH DISPLAY,**_ complains Shinryu.

"You'd rather He came as a moogle, wrapped in rags?"

_**I'D RATHER HE NOT COME AT ALL. AT THE LEAST HE NEEDN'T COME IN FIRE AND GLORY.**_

"Says the Dragon wrapped in crystals and splendor."

_**OF MYSELF THESE ARE. THE FIRE AND GLORY I GAVE HIM, AND HE HAS SQUANDERED.**_

"Nothing can be glorious without you? Nothing can blaze with a fiery purity, save by your grace, is that it?"

_**I AM OLDER AND MIGHTIER THAN ANYTHING ANYWHERE. WHY SHOULD I BE ANY RESPECTOR OF PERSONS?**_

"Pride cometh before the fall, they say."

_**I AM HE WHO MAKES FALL, AND HE WHO RAISES UP. I WAS BEFORE GODS WERE. I WILL BE WHEN OMEGA IS NO MORE. YOU SPEAK OF PRIDE, I SPEAK OF FACTS; INARGUABLE AND INCONTROVERTIBLE.**_

"So did The Scholar, and where did that get him?"

_**DO NOT COMPARE ME TO SO BASE A FOOL.**_

"Is there a higher fool you'd rather be compared to?"

To that the Lord Dragon makes no reply. He does not deign even to look in my direction. Instead, His mighty gaze is drawn to the being of fire, glory, light, wonder and terror descending the ruins of Gurgu's slope. I permit my own gaze to follow His, and contemplate the glory of God.

What is Cid Lufaine, one might wonder. Is He a God? Is He more than a God? Is he a man, of flesh and bone? Is he a moogle, of fur and fluff? Who is this man, for whom all must fight? Who is He, who decided once that our lives were worth less than His, and less still than His vengeance? What is He? If He is God, must we worship Him?

After leaving Chaos' castle, Jecht and I arrived in a place called the Vale of Starvation, a realm where they whose chief sins in Heaven had been avarice, lust, greed, or gluttony, remained forever bound. It was as though a great desert, arid, yet prone to storms of fire, ice, and sustenance just barely out of reach. The scum who here remained were trapped partially in the sands, their movement restricted in accordance with the level of their sin.

We were here to find the first of our recruits -Sephiroth-, amidst the sands. I recall finding it odd that a murderer and madman like Sephiroth would receive so soft a punishment. After voicing as much to Jecht, I was surprised by the intelligence of his answer.

"Sephiroth wanted to walk the Heavens, spreadin' death 'n horror everywhere he went. Before that, though, he was a soldier, and a hero. You know the problem with heroes? People love 'em. They give 'em power, and honor, and glory. And all that fools the saps into thinkin' they got _rights_, and _freedom_, and _privilege._ For a man like Sephiroth, there is no punishment greater than spending all eternity completely incapable of _doin'_ anythin', but perfectly aware of it at all times."

"That or the Gods couldn't contain him the way they did Kefka?"

"You saw how our friend the emperor was, right? They _say_ it was a fluke that Firion managed that, but if you ask me, ain't no such thing. If it can happen, a God can _make_ it happen. Believe you me, pally, in Hell, punishment ain't even about what's _just_ or _deserved_. Gods punish us in ways that amuse them most. And ain't a thing half so funny to Gods as watching us _suffer_."

It struck me then that the beings we were working for and against were far, far more terrifying than I had originally believed. When I was with Obsidian, I had believed the Gods to be no more than men with large armies in their finger-tips. It was a core belief of ours: The Gods were _human_, not infallible, and therefore nothing more than slavers. They could be wrong, they could be fooled, and above all else, they could be defeated. When I left Obsidian, The Scholar amended that doctrine. The Gods _were_ wrong, _because_ they fooled, and they _must_ be defeated. Nowadays I suppose it's the Gods _are _wrong, _we_ must fool others, _so that_ the Gods will be defeated.

At that moment I realized that my initial belief had been wrong. Some of the Gods, if not all, were indeed Omnipotent, and some of them were wise beyond my measure. They could devise punishments in a personal and yet general fashion, designed to torment a group of persons so completely, and to extract the absolute most agony conceivable from a single soul. Nothing escaped them, nothing.

And so I was caught up in a game much larger than I originally imagined. How big I had yet to grasp, and would not realize until my return to Chaos' seat, but in the intervening moments, I was horrified, gripped by a nameless fear. Cid Lufaine WANTED me to help Chaos, and Chaos WANTED to lose this battle to win a war that no one, save He, had even mentioned. All around me things were not adding up, and I could only stand idly as they all set the wheels spinning around me.

Wrapped up in these ruminations, I did not see the hand shoot from the sand to grasp my ankle and send me sprawling earthward. The sand rushed into my nose, burned my eyes, and filled my lungs. More hands shot upward from the sands, attempting to pull me down.

"Let go!" Jecht roared, attempting to hack the hands off of me.

"Noooooo," moaned a head, somewhere in the distance.

"Better he stay with us."

"We don't _want_ it to end."

"_No one_ wants it to end."

"The HELL are you people talking about? LET HIM GO." Jecht was struggling with the hands, and I was struggling for breath.

_"THE DREAM!"_ one screeched.

_"HE'S GOING TO END IT! WE DON'T WANT IT TO END!"_

"You LIKE being in this desert?" I managed to gasp.

"We _deserve this._ This is better than what you want for us!"

"And what about those who fester in Heaven?" I spit, finally broken free from the frenzy of flesh beneath the sands.

"They have _lives. Loves._ Would you take all that away from them?"

"Don't pretend not to understand. If you'd change Heaven, it will be completely. If you overthrow the Gods, you overthrow _everything_. Are you ready for that?"

"Ignore them," a head said behind us. "That's what I do."

We turned and saw the remnant of the once proud Sephiroth. Everything below his upper lip was buried in the sand, so that his mouth filled with it constantly, especially when he tried to speak.

"It's about time we found you."

"Found me? Well, part of me, anyway."

"You're joking."

The revelation was unwelcome on every level. Oh, we'd found Sephiroth, sure, but only a part of him. The lustful were in pieces, all over the desert. If we wanted him for our war, we were going to have to find every last part and put him back together. It was not something I looked forward to doing.

_**HE IS HERE,**_ Shinryu says, interrupting my reverie. I look up and see Him. God the Father, Cid Lufaine. He is a man, mighty in frame, but frail in bearing. He looks tired, so very tired. His only clothing is a cloak of Moogleskin, perhaps the one He wore not too long ago. Despite the weary tilt to His walk, He looks the picture of a God. Long, white beard, perfect body, and an indescribable aura of power. Truly, if there are any Gods, they are as wondrous to behold as this.

_**CID,**_ Shinryu rumbles, _**SO GOOD TO SEE YOU. I TRUST YOU SLEPT WELL?**_

"I slept too long. We both have. I am awake, now, and that is what matters."

_**WE WILL RESUME THE WARS, THEN? I AM HUNGRY, CID.**_

"You know the war is ending, Shinryu. Omega is here. Frankly, I am glad She's putting it down. I can't do this anymore. These are people, not playthings. We have a responsibility to end this."

_**I AM SORRY TO HEAR YOU SAY THIS, CID. OMEGA IS DOWN THERE, NOT UP HERE. WE HAVE ALL THE TIME TILL SHE ARRIVES TO PREPARE. I NEED TO PREPARE, CID. I WILL USE THIS WAR TO PUT HER OUT, ONCE AND FOR ALL. WHEN DESTRUCTION IS DESTROYED, I WILL AT LAST BE FREE. YOU CANNOT BACK OUT ON ME NOW.**_

"Here's something for you to consider, my draconic friend: what if Omega is bringing something far, far worse than Herself with Her?"

_**THERE IS NOTHING MORE WORRISOME THAN OMEGA.**_

"You're wrong," Cid Lufaine and I say in unison. He looks at me and, with a nod, allows that I voice what I have in mind. From my answer, I can tell He is surprised.

"Chaos is coming," I say, "And He's not alone."


	17. Chapter 17 Now You're Learning

_**LOCATION: MT. GURGU, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: FOUR DAYS UNTIL CYCLE 14.**_

Neither Cid nor Shinryu spoke for a good minute. Shinryu, I expected, would laugh the idea of Chaos off, and Cid, I could not read Him. They both just stood there, looking at me, studying me, considering whether Chaos was really a greater threat than Omega.

"Listen to me. I was _with_ Him. I know what He is planning. Chaos is the bigger threat."

_**BIGGER THAN A BEING WHO HAS NOW PROVEN SHE CAN KILL WE, WHO ARE GREATER THAN THE GODS? BIGGER THAN A BEING WHOSE SOLE PURPOSE IS TO CONSUME ALL REALITY, FROM THE VOID TO THE CRYSTAL REALM? I THINK NOT.**_

"I cannot say, Shinryu, but I am aware that this situation has become much more than we expected," Cid says with a frown. "The Scholar corrupted Cosmos completely. I don't know what became of Her afterward, but when She arrives, He will, too."

_**WE KNEW THIS ALREADY. WHY WORRY NOW?**_

"But we did not expect the rest. Someone kept us sleeping for so long, Shinryu. We were down there so long I really did think my son lost to me, in a realm, however fictitious, that was vast and terribly real. It was not Chaos, and it was not The Scholar. There's something else."

_**AND IT IS THIS SOMEONE ELSE YOU FEAR?**_

"No. The one that terrifies me is the one who has been trying to contact Omega within the Dream. Our attentions were drawn to Omega from the beginning, and I fear that we were foolish to allow that. Something else was happening, and, because of Omega, we did not notice."

"Aren't the both of you Omniscient? Shouldn't you know this?"

"Imagine having an entire library in your head. Now imagine that this library contains all the information that ever was, is, and will be. Now imagine you've just woken up from a sleep which consumed all life. The facts are there, but it could be a long time for us to find them."

_**WHAT IF THIS SOMEONE TRYING TO CONTACT OMEGA WAS THE SAME ONE WHO HELD US ALL IN THE DREAM?**_

"It would take multiple persons to do that, but if that's the case, I could see it happening. This pair, then, whoever they are, they are the greater threat. They held you and I, Omega and Chaos, all within a prison state."

_**WHAT DO YOU PROPOSE, THEN?**_

"We retain our partnership. I need you, still, Shinryu. Whatever did all this is something I cannot hope to stop alone."

_**AND IN RETURN?**_

"The war is yours. Feed until you have what you need to stop Omega."

_**NOT GOOD ENOUGH. WHAT HAPPENS AFTER OMEGA COMES? DO I STARVE?**_

"What happens afterward I do not care. This ends for us. You go and find somewhere else to feed."

_**WHAT IF I JUST CONSUME YOU ALL BEYOND REPAIR?**_

"You know full well you cannot do that. If that will not persuade you, then come with me, when this ends, and we shall make a new war elseplaces."

_**I DO NOT BELIEVE YOU WILLING TO FORFEIT YOUR OWN GOAL FOR MY STOMACH'S SAKE. PERHAPS YOU THINK YOU'VE GROWN STRONG ENOUGH TO FACE ME? LET ME REMIND YOU THAT-**_

__"What _will_ persuade you, then? Must I myself-"

"Is this how Gods conduct their business?" I spat. "I'll be glad when Chaos shreds the both of you, then. Look at the two of you. Neither of you care for these people. Oh, you _say_ you do, Cid, but when you're against the wall, you sell them like Livestock to this living stomach here. And you, Shinryu, you don't care about defeating Omega. You've said as much yourself! And if you did, you'd use these warriors to stop Her. You'd think the end of destruction a common cause. But what will you say to this? You don't _need_ their help? Then for your pride I'll feel no pity as Chaos tears us limb from limb."

_**HE TALKS AS THOUGH HE WERE SOMEHOW BETTER.**_

"There is much happening before your eyes that you don't see, Liar. You were sent to put Chaos in motion by none other than myself. Chaos is playing the cards we gave you to give Him. You're reading the first chapters, and Shinryu and I are discussing the books' ending."

"What ending! If you sell these souls to Shinryu, this _never_ ends!"

"Are you so slow? Omega is _coming_. One way or another, this all ends. I have done all I could to turn Her away, but the Scholar was still there when I left. If She comes here as a pawn of His, we _must_ be prepared. Do you understand that? Do you see the balance of knives upon which all life hangs? Omega is a feint, orchestrated by whoever trapped us all in World C! But even as a feint, She is a very real sword in the hands of the Scholar. Chaos is coming, of that we're aware, and His wrath we must face, but every obstacle must be handled in its own time."

I tried to warn them, and now, seeing that they would not listen, I only shrugged and walked away. I will serve them, right up to the moment they dragged us to our eternal annihilation, I had sworn to do so, but I would not enjoy it.

As I walk, I turn my thoughts back to my escape from that ragged desert, and the words Sephiroth shared after we had fled from it. His body was knitting itself together as we made our way toward our destination; a cavern, according to Jecht, wherein we will find Kuja.

"They're all playing you, aren't they?" He asked.

"I haven't the slightest what you're talking about."

"They're already divided up into little factions, and each one of them has tried to get you to agree to work for them, haven't they?"

"Let's say they've done that. Why would this matter to you?"

"This is what they always do. That fact should be of import to you."

"Oh? And why is that?"

"If they've done this before, and we are still going off to fight for Chaos, their little in-fighting doesn't get us anywhere, now, does it?"

"It will get me far enough."

"And where is that?"

"Vengeance. The Scholar will pay for what he has done."

"Ah, vengeance. If that's the case, why not? Let's see who destroys who, first, shall we? Will your lust for vengeance be what consumes us? Or Chaos'? Or mine?"

His tone was too calm for comfort, and so I made it a point of walking ahead of him. It astonishes me, now, how travel worked in Heaven. At times vehicles could be employed, and at others one could simply teleport. Walking in Heaven was for leisure purposes only. But in Hell? In Hell one walked _everywhere_. It was apparently a part of the torture. I stopped dead when I realized my mistake.

"The pact."

"What pact?" Sephiroth asked, feigning ignorance.

"I released you without it. That won't do. Jecht, restrain him."

"You're joking. Him, restrain me?"

"You're still knitting together. Jecht can take you apart before you're done. Unless you'd like a demonstration."

"That's not necessary, and neither is your pact. What do I need Gods for? I nearly was one myself."

"You'll need this one. His arm, Jecht."

Jecht nodded and tore Sephiroth's arm off. Sephiroth roared in fury as his blood sprayed across Jecht's body. Jecht, in a show of great maliciousness, put the arm around its owners shoulders, as if to comfort. "Plenty more where that came from, pally. Best you take the doctor's deal. You're not supposed to be out of the desert, and Chaos'll put you back in it if you don't play nice."

"Why would I strike a deal with the losing side?"

"You don't have a choice. You took Chaos' power, and now He wants yours."

"Wake up, Cid! Chaos is going to _lose_ this time! Anyone can see it. He hasn't learned _anything_ from the past cycles."

"What does He need to learn?" Jecht asked, "Seems to me He's been _winning_ for a long time now."

"You wouldn't understand. Chaos hasn't learned, but Cosmos _has_. She's planning on using Crystals to fight Chaos. Oh, sure, Chaos has all that power, but Crystals contain unlimited potential. He's going to fail."

"What Chaos does with us is His to do. If I should live to see my foes die by His hand, I have no worry being done in by His."

"You fool. Revenge is a sickness. It consumes us until all we are is a lust to see it done."

"Cheap words, coming from you."

"Someone is selling Chaos out. Last time, last time there was too much happening. Too much that Chaos and the others did not see."

"Then tell it to Chaos' face when you see Him."

"I can't!"

"Oh? Why not? Something else you're not sharing?"

"When you're defeated in the war, you lose your memories of it."

"Ah, so you don't know any of this, and are just making it up! Sounds to me like you're jealous of Chaos, and just want His power for yourself. Maybe you're the mole, if any such a thing exists."

"How do you even draw a conclusion like that? I'm warning you! I'm trying to help!"

"A noble gesture from a man who has long since abandoned nobility. You killed countless people. You embraced the truth, that you are a monster, and slaughtered innocent and guilty alike. Why would I believe you for an instant?"

"Can a man not be forgiven for his sins?"

"Forgiveness is a joke. Why should I forgive, when I can have vengeance. Drop the act, Sephiroth. We're in Hell. No one is going to forgive you here. Sin is eternal. It is a stain that, once acquired, can never be washed clean. You are rejected forever. Whatever hero you once were, you're not now. You're a freak, just like the rest of us. Now shut up, say, 'I do,' and let's be on with it."

"Never. I'll have no more part in this."

"Jecht."

Jecht placed his arm around Sephiroth's shoulder and, clenching down on it, forced his remaining are upward. I extended my hand and clasped Sephiroth's. The flames began to snake forward as I spoke, "What will you do for revenge, Sephiroth? Will you cower in the shadows, bemoaning all you could have been? Or will you channel your hatred into our own? Will you join the Lord thy God, the God of Chaos and Discord, and turn back the hand of Fate? Will you become hatred, become revenge itself, lose yourself to all but that fiery, all-consuming need for vengeance, that cold which leaves all numb and empty in the end, or will you fade away like the worm you are? Do you accept the power of God in your afterlife, or do you now reject this last chance? SAY IT!"

"No."

"SAY IT!"

"NO."

"Jecht, his mouth."

Jecht pried Sephiroth's mouth open. It wasn't hard, his jaw nearly detatching as he did. The sight was enough to make me laugh. "You're falling apart, Sephiroth. Consent and the love of God will hold you still."

Sephiroth snarled in disapproval, his mouth held open by those bronzed hands. I nodded, and Jecht plunged his fist into Sephiroth's spine, up his throat, and into his skull. The once proud warrior shuddered with a pain I'm sure I never wish to know, Jecht forcing his mouth to move in the ways needed to say the words.

"All you have to do is agree, Sephiroth, and all of this ends. The rotting, the falling to pieces, the unspeakable pain. All of it ends the moment you consent. Join us, Sephiroth, and we will burn Heaven to ashes, bring God Himself to His knees, and all the Gods with Him. Join us, and Fate will bend herself over and take it however we demand."

He wanted to resist, I could see it in his eyes, but he just didn't have it in him anymore. His very flesh was turning to dust, the desert beckoning him, and he was without force to resist. At last, in a moment of supreme sweetness, his spirit broke, and a terrible sound came from within him. "I will," he said, and with that the flames engulfed him. Jecht narrowly averted becoming a part of Sephiroth, and, afterward, the man was made whole before our eyes.

"Suffering," he said, "is a gift. I'll be sure to deprive you of it. All will feel such pain that they no longer suffer, but look to me, and accept at last the Gospel of Despair."

"Welcome to the team," I sneered before sending him off to Chaos' castle, "we consider despair our speciality."


	18. Chapter 18 Cry For Help

_**LOCATION: CRESCENT LAKE AREA, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: FOUR DAYS REMAINING UNTIL CYCLE 014.**_

I am not listening to Cid and Shinryu as they argue. I've tired of them, but the oaths I've made are binding and iron-clad. Indeed, the many deals struck thus far may well condemn us all. I can only hope that my failures override my successes in this, as they have in so many other places.

I turn my thoughts toward the events after my dialogue with Sephiroth, and the unsettling tone they set for the remainder of the tragic comedy that was my stay in World D.

Jecht and I were in a place known as the Bramble of Hubris, where they who overreached their lots in life and stepped on many toes to do so languish in agony. It was not unlike the desert we had just left, but I hoped that, at the very least, the inhabitants would be in one piece.

My fears were, in a sense, assuaged by Jecht pointing at the waters. "Don't stray from the path. Can you see them? Though the waters' surface is still, there are thousands beneath it, struggling franticly to break free and breathe the air. The water permits one to enter, but not exit. So don't stray from the path!"

True enough, there were bodies beneath the still surface, beating on it as though it were no more than a pane of glass. Their faces agonized, their dead eyes seeming to plead with me for a freedom I could not grant them. The despair on their faces as I walked away from them was tangible.

"How do we find Kuja, then?" I asked, "He's under all this, isn't he?"

"Kuja? Yeah, he's in this. That's what happens when you spark a war that engulfs a planet and go on a rampage that breaks into the Crystal World where none may tread and nearly break all of Heaven, Hell, and Life."

His words are curious, upon reflection. In reality, Kuja DID reach the Crystal World, and, according to Shinryu, such a place existed in the Dream, and when Omega came for Him He had been trapped there by Cid. What is this Crystal World, and how does it relate to what is, in fact, real? Shinryu claimed that the Crystal World He was confined to was able to hold Him because it was different from the rest of the Dream, but then, the Dream itself held them both, didn't it?

In retrospect, I confess great worry and confusion. This, I suppose, is nothing new. I have already wondered if there is a God in the vast expanses of World A, and, moreover, if such a being cares about us, or is as antagonistic as the Gods I know and the Gods I remember. What difference, then, does it make, if I worry that there is no World A? What if we are still dreaming? Am I a man, or a butterfly, dreaming he is a man? Or am I a plate of sashimi, dreaming I am a bowling ball dreaming I am a butterfly dreaming I am a man? What, really, is real?

"Found him." Jecht said, motioning me toward him. There, beneath the surface, was indeed Kuja. He beat against the "glass" like all the others, staring at us, pleading for air. I toyed briefly with the idea of raising them all and bringing an army to Chaos, but, remembering that we were to fail, and that Kuja's narcissism and selfishness was a key piece in that plan, I withheld.

Withhold, as it happened, was the worst possible choice to make. When at last I DID reach for Kuja's hand, a shot was fired, piercing the water, flying just by my hand. In surprise I turned to see who had fired it.

Cid Del Norte Marquez, alias The Messenger, stood not far from us, the gun in his hand. It was an unusual weapon for a man who was normally a big pacifist, but such was the case.

"Messenger," I spat.

"I suppose such a title is indeed fitting for my role today," he answered, his attitude depressing as ever.

"I thought the Messenger was the one who was supposed to get shot, not do the shooting."

"You'll pardon me, but you were about unleash an unspeakable horror, and I wished to stop you."

"If you came to stop me, you're far too late. I've let worse than Kuja free already."

"I wouldn't rate Sir Jecht as worse, though he is a formidable foe."

"Much obliged, gramps."

"I don't speak of Jecht. Kefka is free. The Emperor is back. I'll find the scattered shards of Chaos and unleash Him on all of Heaven."

"I wish you had not said that."

"Why not? Are you so willing to turn your back on what is true that you now actively shun information?"

"No, because now I must conceal it from the Scholar."

"Ah, because _he_ shuns this information actively."

"No, because he cannot know this."

"Enough of these pointless riddles! I don't want to see _you_ and I don't want to _hear_ what the Scholar sent you to say and I _will not_ be persuaded to submit to his will again!"

"The Scholar did not send me here today. I am not bringing his message."

"What message _do_ you bring? And why should I care? You _deserted_ me. Your silence, ALL of you and your silence, that's what brought me here. Not a one of you stood to my defense that day. Why should I listen to you now!"

"Because you were right!"

The Messenger's admission startled me. At the time I thought of it as a small validation, a dose of the things to come in Chaos' new world, a preview of sorts. He quickly corrected me.

"Something is wrong with the Scholar. He has lost his way. Obsidian has lost its way. We were wrong to use the Eye of Matoya. It has _changed_ us. Not just the Scholar, but all of us. Me, the Chronicler, the Wanderer, even the Engineer. The Eye corrupted us, and we have fallen from our path to Final Heaven."

"What do I care? You rejected this message when it came to you."

"And now I come, admitting that you were right, and that we need you!"

"You come too late! What is done is done. Whatever this _corruption_ is, it is far too late to stop it. You had your chance, and threw it to the wind."

"Doctor, _please_. Think of the Scholar. He isn't right! He's become so bitter; ceased to be the visionary and instead warped himself into being bent, not on equality with the Gods and liberty of souls, but the destruction of the Gods!"

"Why would _I_ want to help that misguided, pompous, arrogant bastard?"

"You're his _friend!_ We're all friends! And now, in our darkest hour-,"

"I _was never_ his friend! I was never your friend! Whatever illusion of friendship we all entertained was forever destroyed the moment you all stood silent as he mocked me in the street. To _Hell_ with your friendship!"

"You weren't _there_, Doctor! You don't know what happened to the Farron girl, to what he- what _we_ did to her!"

"I am not to blame for your monstrosities."

"You are the root of this monstrosity, Doctor, much as you would deny it. The battle with Barthandelus _broke_ her completely. Her mind fragmented and shattered, and all of that because _you_ chose her. We never chose that for her. _You_ did."

"That much, then, I accept. Whatever horrors you bestowed upon her are not mine to bear."

"Then know this: The girl was nothing after the battle. She was in danger of fading completely. So we repaired her. We restored Serah Farron as best we could. But every time the pieces were in place, she crumbled again. Until we found the glue that held it all together.

"Serah's sister fought in the last battle between Chaos and Cosmos. Serah's memories are connected to her sister's, and in those memories The Scholar found a rage for the Gods to match his own. It became the glue to hold her together again, the glue needed to fix the mess that _you_ made. The Eye of Matoya showed us something far, far worse, though.

"The rage Serah's sister felt was focused strongly on Cosmos, and made her out to be the center of all that was wrong in Heaven in and Hell. Indeed, She is a Goddess wrapped in mysteries. To fight Her, the Eye of Matoya revealed a power no man, angel, or God has any business wielding."

The Messenger lowered his head for a second, gathering his courage. "_Omega_." He said.

"You put _Omega_ into Serah Farron? You really _are_ mad!"

"No, we did not put Omega into her. Not intentionally! The rage her sister had felt, it drew the spirit of Omega to the girl. The Eye merely showed us this, and led us to the weapon. Even now the others search for the pieces of Omega at The Scholar's behest. The girl is being made into a weapon to force the Gods into submission, and Cosmos will be the first she destroys."

"This is your problem, not mine." I said, "May Omega destroy you all, first."

"Perhaps the Eye of Matoya has driven _you_ mad." The Messenger said, at last losing his temper. "Are you so angry with us that you would stand idly by as your friends become monsters and turn innocents into beings so _unspeakable_ that they stand poised to destroy Eternity? Did it never mean a thing to you; Final Heaven? Or is it just that your petty, vindictive attitude blinds you from the peril in which we all stand now!

"You were _right_, Doctor. We are becoming the things we so hated. Now is the chance to put that to an end. Come with me, and we can set right all that is going wrong. Come with me, and we can save Heaven from the horrors we ourselves unleashed."

"I have no interest in returning to the Scholar's side. I will not be his dog any more."

"You'd sooner be Chaos'?"

"I would sooner be free!"

"Do you call this freedom? You labor now for Chaos, doing His errands in Heaven and Hell, speaking in His name. And to what end? What is the twisted scheme that spurs you onward, that blinds you from the truth of my words?"

"Look at you! You know not even what I am doing, and yet you accuse me of madness! This is why I have abandoned you! You all seek to judge in the place of Gods! Wasn't the mission to make ourselves free of them? Yet you would all BE them!"

"Then know this, Liar!" The Messenger spat, showing his true colors at last, "You are about to do something from which there is no turning back. You're in over your head. Kuja was put in this damned mire for a _reason_. Chaos and Cosmos war because they broke into the Crystal World. Kuja was not even a God and did it _alone._ Chaos is as His name implies: unpredictable. Do you think the God of Discord will keep His word? Do you think the God of Chaos has even _told_ you what you're doing?

"We are flies, Liar, you and I. Flies caught in webs that are themselves caught in webs. Here, now, we can cut the webs and free everyone. This is as close to Final Heaven as you and I can ever come. Reject it now and our fates are naught but waiting for the biggest spiders to come and gobble us up."

"GO!" I shouted in response, "If spiders it be, I hope only to live to see them swallow you first."

"Then Gods have mercy on your soul, for when you had the chance, you had none."

The Messenger bowed his head, then slowly faded into the mist. When he had vanished completely, I spat on the ground. It took a good minute for me to regain my composure, but thereafter I was prepared to continue onward with the plan.

"I know what I must do."

I thrust my hand into the still glass-water. It was colder than ice, and felt as though it were gnawing its way up my arm. The dead beneath the water began to flock toward my outstretched hand. Kuja clasped it, but even as he did, the dead began to pull on him. It was not clear whether they wanted to hitch a ride out, or if _they wanted to keep him in._

At last Kuja's head breached the surface, like a slimy child escaping the womb, and as he took his first breath, I shouted, "What would you do for rage? Kuja, you, who would have ended us all! I ask you, what would you do for revenge? Would make a covenant with Chaos, the Son of God, to turn back the hands of Fate? For the chance to rewrite your sorry state, would you sell your soul to God's beloved Son?"

"YESS!" Kuja moaned in what appeared to be ecstasy, "Oh, YES! For Chaos I would raze the Heavens and lay waste to Hell! If the Son of God will give me the chance to live, to have my life, I will ruin all that stand in His way!"

"Then the deal is made." With that I pulled Kuja the rest of the way out of the waters, and the flames of the covenant made solid the deal. Kuja sank to the ground and laughed hysterically as the damned beneath the waters beat against it futily.

"Now it begins again," Kuja said, "This unending play of Gods and their pawns. Now it begins again!"


	19. Chapter 19 Idle Flirting

_**CRESCENT LAKE AREA, WORLD B.**_

_**FOUR DAYS UNTIL 14**__**th**__** CYCLE.**_

"Then it is decided," Cid said, as we crested a hill overlooking the plains east of Elfland. "We turn Omega against The Scholar, if She has sided with him, and we turn Chaos against Omega afterward."

**THUS WE ELIMINATE ALL THREATS TO OURSELVES,** Shinryu rumbled, floating alongside us, **AND, WITH CHAOS, OMEGA, AND THE SCHOLAR GONE, WE WILL BE FREE TO DISPOSE OF THIS UNSEEN MANIPULATOR.**

"And thereafter, I will return to World A."

**AND I SHALL FEED ON YOUR FOES, AT LAST GRANTING YOU THE REVENGE YOU HAVE ALWAYS WANTED.**

"Are we done bartering with the souls of men, then?" I ask, impatient. "Or would you two like to discuss at length which souls you'll be condemning to an eternity of warfare next?"

**YOU MISUNDERSTAND, THE CYCLES WILL END HERE.**

"How will you feed yourself hereafter, then, Oh scaly one?"

**I HAVE OBSERVED THAT THE WORLDS ARE WARLIKE OF THEMSELVES. I WILL MERELY HARVEST THE ENERGIES WASTED IN THESE WARS. A SOLUTION I TRUST YOU ARE . . . ACCEPTING OF?**

"Who, me? I am merely the intermediary between you two. I serve the Lord Dragon and the High Cid in exchange for protection from Chaos and out of a mutual desire to see the Scholar stopped. Beyond that, what do I care? Raze the worlds, freeze Hell, and tear down Heaven. So long as what I want is given me, I don't care at all." A lie, on my part, as I have also a desire to know what waits for us in World A and a growing interest in seeing that neither Cid nor Shinryu have power there, but I suppose they're better off not knowing this.

"We must be in position, then," Cid says, "Each of us has an important part to play in the coming conflict, haven't we? I assume we're all aware of which ones we'll play?"

**I WILL TELL OMEGA OR HER SERVANTS THAT THE SCHOLAR, RATHER THAN CHAOS, IS THE GREATEST THREAT TO HER ALL. I WILL COME UNDER THE GUISE OF A PENITENT GOD, WHO SEEKS TO AT LAST GRANT GODHOOD TO ALL. HAVING GIVEN THIS TO YOU, COSMOS, AND CHAOS, MY WORDS WILL BEAR CREDIBILITY.**

"I," I say, "will likewise direct Cosmos' warriors toward The Scholar and his men, while sowing the seeds of doubt amongst them, warning them of the connection between Cosmos and The Scholar."

"Indeed. And I will seek to sow confusion amongst Chaos' warriors by warning them of the coming of Omega, with the intent that they warn Cosmos' warriors of this same problem, thereby distracting all on the field from our presence."

**IN THE END, NONE WILL REALIZE THAT WE HAVE PULLED THEIR STRINGS TO NEUTRALIZE THE SCHOLAR AND OMEGA. WITH THE GREATER THREATS REMOVED, THE MANIPULATOR WILL BE FORCED TO INTERVENE DIRECTLY, BEFORE THE CYCLES END ONCE AND FOR ALL.**

"As good a plan as we're likely to get," Cid says, ignoring the myriad of flaws for what I assume must be His own wise purpose. Shinryu does not comment, and seems to ignore the flaws as well. So I take it upon myself to raise last one.

"What of Chaos?" I ask.

"It pains me to lose my son, the last tie I have to who I once was," Cid says, "but if Chaos intervenes, we will pit Him against Omega, and destroy them both. I would take Chaos with me, back to World A, to exact my revenge, but He has grown into something twisted and cruel. If He does not obey, He must be destroyed before He destroys us."

With such words, it is difficult to argue further with the God of Gods of Gods. Nevertheless, I cannot help but wonder: Is Chaos more twisted than Cid? What are the true goals of these two Gods? Shinryu claims He seeks only food, and Cid claims He only wants revenge, but these games are so contrary to their goals that I cannot help but consider that there might be more to this meeting than I see.

My thoughts drift back to after I had pulled Kuja from the depths, and the words which he shared with me then. He dried his hair and clothing as best he could, but still looked like nothing more than a sopping rat.

"Come to collect me, have you?" He asked.

"Lord Chaos means to make war on Lady Cosmos and all the Heavens. You have been specially chosen for this fight."

"Yes, yes, I'm sure. You know, you're a lot better looking than the last one."

"What does that mean?"

"It means what it means, of course. You're better looking than the last one was."

"What last one?"

"Last one sent to collect us, of course."

He said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world, but to me it came as something of a shock. Last one sent to collect them? What did that even mean? I had to know.

"Chaos intends to use the crystals to change fate, to grant us the power to set right what went wrong in our lives."

"Does he now? What went wrong in my life? As far as I know, everything went the way everyone planned it. Do you know what I signed up for just now? Power. I still know how to get into the Crystal Realm, and when I do, I'm going to smash it to bits."

"Why?"

"You have the power to act in Chaos' name, but you still ask these questions? Why not? If I get my life back, I still have to die someday. What good is anything if I'm dead? And when I die, they trap me here! What good is there, having a Heaven and Hell, is I never see any more than this hole in the ground? I'd sooner none of it ever was."

"A fair point. But what happens when it is all gone?"

"Who cares? Ask Ex-Death about it. You won't see him worrying about it. Haven't you been to the Void by now? What does it feel like there?"

"How do you know I've been to the Void?"

"I didn't, until you admitted to it just now. What does it feel like?"

"It's cold. Unbearably so."

"Better than it was beneath the surface of that water, then. It was slimy. So slimy."

Kuja drifts away a bit, and Jecht speaks up, "We don't got all day to be wastin' on his kind. If yer done askin' him questions, we need to pick up everyone else, fast-like."

"Fine. Be gone, Kuja."

"To Castle Chaos? Gladly. A question for you, though: Do you know why the Ivalicians call Chaos the Walker of the Wheel?"

"Because He is doomed to forever repeat his fate. I _am_ Ivalician."

"Fair enough. Now reconsider everything. Why is this the Eternal _Cycle?"_

"Because God has condemned Chaos to forever suffer."

"Oh, is that all it is? I think you're missing something much, much larger . . ."

"Like what? The injustice of God? The brazen manner in which Cosmos at once creates and flouts the Laws of Heaven and escapes the punishment She is long overdue?"

"Like when all of this began, and how all of it will end."

"I know how it must end."

"You know how you _want_ it to end. You have no idea how it _will_ end."

"And how is that?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I can't answer that."

"_Why not?_"

"You'll never be able to hear me all the way from Castle Chaos."

"You're right here-,"

Before I even spoke, I knew what would happen. I was not surprised so much as frustrated when he had gone. This business of half-answered questions was beginning to annoy, but I told myself then that I would learn how to play the game and beat them all at it. No one, not Kuja, Chaos, or Cid would best me by the end of all this.

"You're on very thin ice," Jecht said, "and yer not very light, either. Be more careful who you provoke. The going gets far worse from here out."

"Is that so?" I mused, "I can hardly wait to see."


	20. Chapter 20 A Montage

_**OCCASION: THREE DAYS PRIOR TO FOURTEENTH CYCLE**_

_**LOCATION: CARDIAN ISLES, WORLD B.**_

_**SITUATION: MONTAGE**_

Three days remain until the final battle begins. I can no longer afford to waste my time with this record, and so I must make now two brief accounts of the rest of the gathering in of the children of Chaos.

The first of these children was the White Cloud, a demon swordsman from a Mist-shrouded world. In life he had served Chaos as a slave, and a general of Gaudium. He was the Earl Tyrant's enforcer, the brute strength of the operation. Feared and hated across the Outer Worlds, many were they who were taken into Chaos' embrace by the white sword's misty breath and milky blade.

I found him in the storm of swords, standing naked beneath the rain of daggers and knives. Jecht explained that those who lived their lives as sell-swords, as this Shiroi Kumo had, were doomed to wander these plains forever, feeling the bite of their own swords. For clothing, the once feared Makenshi had naught by a white fog, which did nothing to fend off the swords. As soon as one dagger was done cutting its way through his flesh, it knitted itself shut and waited for the next.

According to Jecht, the White Cloud had once been a brave man, and had died a valiant death, hoping to stop Chaos. His ploy worked, but beyond the veil, Chaos laid claim to his soul, and dragged him down to hell. Our offer was the only hope he had of ever escaping the prison into which he had been thrust.

Interestingly, he rejected the offer when I extended a flaming hand. The horns on his head and bones which grew from his jaw to form a mask over his mouth were as solid as his position on the subject. He would sooner spend eternity in Hell than put into jeopardy that which he had done.

Annoyed, I asked Jecht whether there aren't any others who could take this milk-sop's place. Jecht mentioned a brother, called Kiri, who might prove more apt to join us in our cause. At the mention of this name, the White Cloud's tune changed completely.

"Wait," he said.

"Oh, what now?" I snap, "Do you expect us to leave him alone, just because you beg us to?"

"No. I will go in his place."

"We're not looking for heroes. I want villains for this team. Tell me," I say, extending the burning hand and question, "what would you do for rage?"

"I would serve Chaos all the days of His reign, if I might ensure that my brother is never reborn."

"I believe we have ourselves a deal, then. Shiroi Kumo, White Cloud, Makenshi, welcome to the warriors of Chaos."

The deal struck, we sent the saint among sinners back to Chaos' castle, where we would find him afterward. It was curious to me. I had never before met someone who would willingly rejoin Chaos for this reason. It seemed selfless, and that bothered me. This was not the sort of sacrifice Chaos sought. Kumo did not strike me as the sort of man Chaos was looking for, either, but his power was sufficient to let him pass. He would join Chaos in the fourteenth cycle, and Chaos needed all the firepower he could get when his foes had all lowered their guards after his defeat in the coming thirteenth cycle.

The next man gave an initial impression far worse than that of Kumo. He sat in what could only be described as the Heavenliest place in all of Hell. Robed in a deep crimson, garbed in golden armor, crowned with I recognized immediately as the Dynast King's crown and seated on the thrown of Lesalia, the Atkascha family crest behind him, was seated King Delita Hieral, one of the greatest heroes ever known to all of Ivalice. Across his lap was a single dagger, which seemed to draw all his gaze.

Upon closer inspection, the red robe was sewn of blood, and the floor itself drenched in it. Not a soul was in that hall, save for I, Jecht, and Delita. The greatest man in the history of all Ivalice, the one who accomplished what Venat, Vayne and I set out to do, was alone in Hell.

"Hail, Dynast-King!" I called to him.

"Who mocks me now?" He sullenly inquired, never taking his eye from the dagger.

"I am the Doctor. I am a messenger of God, come to save your tormented soul."

"What has God ever cared about my soul, or the soul of any? What does He know of suffering? Nothing. None of you can know the torments of my soul."

"That is where you are wrong, oh great one. I, too, know what it is like to reach out for all of Ivalice, extend the hand to save it, and have all your work crumble beneath you. I have felt the pain of the Empire as it trembled in rejection of the salvation and unity you would give it. I know what it is to taste power, and then be denied it."  
>"The things you speak of . . ." King Delita said, running a finger along the dagger's edge, "mean nothing. What is power? What is authority? What is salvation? Can these words keep you warm at night? Do they fill your hungering stomach? Can a crown hold you tight, can a scepter make love to you, can a holy thought whisper love into your ear, and squeeze your hand? Swords have no eyes, save the ones they reflect. They cannot respect you, they cannot be your friend. Power does not console, authority does not love, and salvation is no friend to me."<p>

"These are no words for the greatest man in all of history! Look at you! King Delita Hieral, Lord of all _Ivalice._ The man who bested church and war and crown to make himself a hero and a sovereign! And all this you did without any greater force than your sword and will and wit. How can so great a man be moping in Hell, when his glory outshines the Heavens?"

Delita took the dagger in hand, and stretched it out to me. He lifted his eyes from it slowly, until they came to rest on mine. "Is this my dagger? Or is it hers? Whose life did this sword end? How many lives did I put down in the process of elevating my own? Was a crown worth losing Ovelia?"

"She is one woman, Your Highness. I am certain you found others."

"Was the crown worth losing Ramza's friendship? What did he get? I haven't seen him in so long . . . Ramza! What became of Ramza?"

"Ramza Beoulve did not have what it took to shape history. He was weak. Far weaker than you, King Delita. His will was too soft, his naivete too great."

"Was the empire worth Tietra?"

"With all due respect, sir, your sister was dead long before you took the throne. I somehow doubt she figures into the equation."

"And what about my soul? I gained the world, only to lose it and wind up here, trapped in an empty kingdom of my own making."

"Then get it back. God's Son has sent me to help you change your fate. The Gospel is preached to you this day, King Delita. Here the word of the Son of God: 'Inasmuch as ye love me, and keep my commandments, I will raise ye up, and give ye eternal life.' What would you do to have them back, Lord Delita? What would you do to get Ovelia, Tietra, and your kingdom back?"

"I have done unspeakable things for a ring of gold to wear about my head. I have killed good men, innocent men for the sake of a comfortable chair and a luxurious coat. For the praise of men, I have done everything. Do not ask me what I would do, Doctor. No, it is better you ask _what won't I do for those I loved._"

"Then make a covenant with God," I say, offering my hand, "and join Him, in His quest for infinite justice."

Delita stared longingly into the flames for a moment, then reached out and took my hand. So the most ruthless of all Ivalice's statesmen came to join the ranks of Chaos' warriors, and my spirit rose at the thought of having him on our side.

Following Delita, we come to a tower that juts slightly out of Hell. Jecht tells me that this is the home of one Mira, the daughter of a Dark Lord. Apparently, she is one of the few to have ever seen Chaos' power as nothing more than a toy- to the extent that, when she became older, she abandoned it as something childish.

This definition is somewhat at odds with Mira herself. She is the epitome of childish. Her tower is filled with toys, and the demons within are more adorable than horrifying. When we entered her room, we came upon her reclining and reading. It was a jarring contrast to the many who were suffering or at least imprisoned.

"Hello boys," she said, not looking up from her book. "Why don't you have a seat?" Chairs appeared behind us and pushed themselves into our knees, causing us to sit.

"Lady Mira, I presume?"

"Dark Lord Mira. You work for the competition, right?"

"The . . . competition?"

"Oh, yes, Chaos. He's the one trying to conquer Hell these days, isn't He? Thinks He's a God or something."

"Chaos _IS_ a God."

"When did THAT happen? I didn't think they handed out Godhood anymore. Especially not to people in Hell."

"Chaos is the SON of God."

"How can He be the Son of God if He already IS God?"

"No, no, no. He's _a_ God, but the Son _of the_ God, you know, The Highest? The God of the Gods of Gods."

"Ah, because that makes such a big difference. Really, I don't know that He'll be winning. Not as long as He's dating that Goddess in Heaven."

"What? What does that even mean! Little girl, do you know who you're talking about?"

"Chaos and Cosmos. The two of them are lovers."

"The two of them are mortal foes."

"How can they be that if they're both Gods? They're in love."

"The two of them are locked in an eternal struggle for dominance over the fates of trillions of souls. They're not in love. What an immature interpretation of a conflict that is greater than either of us."

"Are you sure? I think there is a lot going on here in Hell you don't know about, Mr. Liar."

My eyes narrowed at the name. The air in the room has grown heavier, and I feel suddenly much more tense. "Who gave you this name?"

"Does that matter? You're becoming popular, here in Hell, did you know that? Everywhere in the pits, the wallowing souls in anguish look upward, hoping one day they'll see your smiling face and your flaming hand. Handing out salvation and hope to those suffering in Hell . . . you're becoming very Messianic, Mr. Liar, sir. Chaos has chosen a good face for His game, whatever that might be . . ."

"Ha! Now there's a thought! Me, a Messiah? I don't have the power to save anyone. That comes from loyal service to the Son of God. The Lord Chaos will save them from their wretched fates, not I."

"But you came here today to entice me to Chaos' side, didn't you? The only people I've ever seen act in His name are His avatars. Used to be Garland made the rounds, then it was that nice Mr. Valentine. Now you."

"Shit! She's got you pegged, Liar! HAW!"

"Alright, then. What's your price, Dark Lord. What will it cost us to get you to play for Chaos?"

"I don't know. I'm just a little girl, and I don't know much about these big wars and all."

"What do you want? Chaos desires you for His war-,"

"Courtship-,"

"Against Cosmos. Name. Your. Price."

"You want to know what I'm after?" She asked, leaning forward, revealing a slightly less juvenile bosom and slightly less innocent fangs as she smiled, "I want a crystal. All for myself. That's what I want."

I stretched forth a hand and said, "Then make a covenant with the Lord Chaos."

No sooner had Mira's hand been released from mine than a loud voice shouted from the far end of the hall, "Sweetiebumpkins! WHY!" We craned our heads to see him. A hulking green man in an expensive purple robe. He had a bushy beard and fleshy neck, that wobbled as he cried. "Why would you make a deal with _them?_"

Mira rolled her red and gold eyes at the man as he came in. "This is my boyfriend, Dan Kring," she muttered, gesturing dismissively at him.

"Mira Craydall, how could you join CHAOS? I thought we were gonna rule Hell together!  
>"Oh, Dan, you're all talk. You always say we're gonna conquer something, and then we just wind up watching blitzball in your mom's basement."<p>

"Why! I'll have you know that when _I_ was the Dark King, people respected me!"

"Dan, you were beaten by a _cure spell._"

"That's not fair! It was by the greatest warrior in the world!"

"It was by Benjamin, whom nobody has seen in ages. Face it Dan, you'll never be Dark Lord again. Chaos is going somewhere, and doing something. He's so . . . exciting!"

"I can't believe you're gonna step out on me for guys like THEM! I mean, come _on._ I bet neither of them has EVER been a threat to world peace!"

"I actually instigated a war for that reason," I said nonchalantly.

"I terrorized a world for ten long years, and ultimately lead to the destruction of another."

"SEE! And they just _work_ for Chaos, Dan! Imagine how much bigger He is! You're washed up."

"You're cheating on me!"

"We're in _HELL_, Dan. You want to be moral now?"

"Evil has standards, too!"

"Yeah? Well maybe I want some more romance in my life! Chaos has an eternal war going on for _HIS_ beloved! The last thing YOU got me was a dusty elixir you bought with your mom's gil!"

"That's not fair!"

"It's _HELL,_ Dan! This is your problem! You're fine with breaking rules when it's convenient for you, but the minute you come up against something even remotely evil, you shy away!"

"I do not! Remember the time I stood up to that dragoon and the commando when we were in that bar in Star World?"

"Okay, first of all, Dan, that bar was a run-down DIVE. Second, the only reason neither of them beat you to a pulp is because you _flinched_ the minute the dragoon touched his own hip. And besides, they weren't even _there_ for you. They were after Seymour Guado. You know, the guy who we went to see because he's an actual celebrity and you're not?"

"You ungrateful little hussy! What about all the times I-,"

"No, Dan, you know what? We're OVER. I'm going to Chaos' Castle, and that's THAT."

"Baby, wait!"

But it was too late. Mira had gone in a puff of brimstone, leaving poor Dan Kring with Jecht and I. Fortunately for him, fate had played in his favor this day. As he stood there, skulking on the edge of tears, I put a hand on his shoulder to comfort him.

"How're you feeling, Dan?"

"Awful! Just awful!"

"Are you upset, Mr. Kring? Would you say you're _angry?_"

"What do you think? I just got dumped, man!"

"What would you do if I said I could change that. If I could fix it."

"Anything!"

"Anything, Dan? Even work for Chaos?"

"Yes! Oh yes!" he wailed, seeming to at last catch my drift. "I would do that! It's all the rage!"

"Welcome aboard," I said, flames already slithering around his pudgy fingers.

The last of these that I can touch on for the moment is a man known as Gaius van Baelsar, the Black Wolf. Legatus of the Garlean Empire, he was found atop of a cliff called Hell's peak. Jecht claimed the mountain was so called, not because it was the highest point in Hell, but because it provided a clear view of Heaven some days. Men would see Heaven once from it and spend eternity there, staring and hoping to see it again.

"I've been waiting for you," he said. "I knew this day would come, sooner or later."

"Chaos calls you to His side," I said, impatiently waiting for this man to turn and face us, that we might end the melodrama.

"The war. Always war. What do I stand to gain from that?"

"You don't stand to gain anything. Chaos has called in your debt. You used His might to survive battle after battle. Now your soul is His."

"And if I refuse?"

"No one refuses Chaos."

"But if I do?"

"He will come for you Himself."

"Let Him come, then. I have no interest in Hell's Messiah."

"I don't think you understand me, sir. No one refuses Chaos."

"Let Him come here, so we can see."

"I AM Chaos."

"You are the Herald of Chaos. Even His fiends are mightier than you."

"How dare you! I am the Herald of Chaos! I act and speak with HIS power! You WILL come, or you will regret it!"

"You? They say you were a scholar in life, not a warrior. I could crush you beneath my feet."

"That was life, friend. This is Hell."

"You sound confident. Care to prove your worth my time?"

"I'm one step ahead of you." I lied, scrambling to remember how to summon a weapon. I decided to approach it from a unique direction, focusing my hate for the men who had ruined my life into weapons. Several swords burst into the air, pointed at Gaius. On them were written the names _Bunansa, Margrace, Kramer, Marquez, Pollendina _and _Previa._

"I'm impressed," The Black Wolf howled, "But I'm not beaten." At last he turns to face us, a sword bursting into his own hand just in time to deflect the first of my blows.

The six come at him from every direction, changing angle and tempo at my whim. All I needed to do was focus on the name written and intensify or ease my hatred for the man whose name is written on them. As far as I could tell, _Bunansa_ and _Previa_ are giving Gaius the most trouble. They look almost like they're competing to see which one can take him down first.

For his part, the Black Wolf put up a good fight. One man against six is not good odds, though, and he was caught off guard. His arrogance soon cost him the victory, and in the end he was on his ass, all six weapons at his throat.

"How did you do this?" He asked, gesturing at the weapons.

"This is the power of Chaos. Take my hand, and covenant with Him, and it will be yours, too. You rejected the Son of God, and I, who am His messenger, have shown you the error of your ways. Return to the Son of God, and feel the embrace of His power."

"Don't think this is over. Someday I'll hand you your ass."

"We shall see," I say, the covenant already sealed. "We shall see."


	21. Chapter 21 Horror Without Purpose

_**LOCATION: CARDIAN ISLES**_

_**OCCASION: THREE DAYS PRIOR TO CYCLE 14**_

"Where is this place?" I asked Jecht, gesturing at the horrible, incongruent and illogical structures.

"This is the Prison At Sanity's Edge, man. Only the most dangerous of souls get put in here."

"Why isn't anyone we've met here, then? It seems unusual."

"I thought you were supposed to be smart. Why would you want all those guys all locked up together in one place?"

"Okay, then who IS in here, if the most dangerous aren't here?"

"Haven't you looked at the list yet? Only two names left."

"It says here 'Chaos' and 'Oscha.'"

"What, no Earl Tyrant?"

"No."

"He's not gonna like that."

"Why should I care? Enuo didn't like it either."

"Well, you'll see."

We walked not much further than the center of the base, where two seraphim stood guarding an isolated cell. They drew their swords, but dropped them after the _Margrace_ and _Marquez_ erupted from their chests. The two crumpled up in burning heaps and we stepped over their smoldering remains.

"Yer startin' ta enjoy this, I think," Jecht said, ripping the hinges off the cell door. He glanced about and added, "I don't ever wanna be stuck in a place like this."

"There are worse places, I'm sure," I say, entering in the cell.

"I wouldn't say it's so bad in here," a child says.

Inside the cell is seated a little boy in a chair. On either side of him stand strange figures like bats, save that they're upright. In the dark it's hard to really see them. His teeth are visible as he smiles, though. Something about the smile sends a chill down my spine. I never did like children, not even my own. There's just a very unnerving quality about them.

"He looks like he'll be fun . . ." the child muses.

"OoooOOoooOOoh. YoU'rE rIgHt sIrE! He LoOkS aBsOlUtElY eNtErTaInInG," laughs the figure to the right, shaking as he does. Something is not right with him.

"Oscha, make him dance for me! I haven't seen any good dances recently!"

"Dancing? Is that the best you can imagine? Make him split in half, then sow him up again," says the one on the left.

"Nooo! I want him to DANCE!"

"AnD hE sHaLl sIrE."

"Not a chance," I said, crossing my arms. "I haven't time for this. I'm here for Chaos. Which one of you would be him?"

"Which one of us isn't him, you mean."

"They locked us all up in here because they thought one of us was Him!"

"We all might be, though."

"I dOn'T rEmEmBeR wHiCh OnE iSn'T aNyMoRe."

"I don't have time for this. JEEECHT!"

"Don't look at me, man. I can't even SEE them, let alone tell you which one isn't Chaos."

"Oh, for the love of- FINE. Let's just get this over with. Which one of you ISN'T Chaos?"

"It could be me," says the left.

"It might be me," says the child.

"ThErE's A cHaNcE tHaT iT's Me."

"There's a chance I wait here until the Gods come and stuff you all in some place far worse. I've no more time for games. Not while the Scholar is assembling an army for Cosmos."

"Ah, Cosmos. How she hurt us."

"She's a big meanie! I hate her! HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE her!"

"I sOrT oF lIkE hEr. I lOvE hEr So MuCh I hAvE tO sMaSh HeR!"

"Which one of you is Oscha?"

"There's a more direct question."

"Oooooh! That's no fair! You're ruining my fun!"

"He's Oscha, then?" I asked, pointing to the one on the right.

"InDeEd~! I aM oScHa, ChAoS."

"Which makes the twerp the Earl Tyrant. You on the left, you're Chaos, then? Terror of Spelvia and all the world beneath it?"

"You could say that, I suppose."

"Done. You two are leaving, now. Chaos has called in His debt. You are His avatars, and will answer."

"They're not going anywhere!" The Earl snapped, "You can't just take my toys away!"

"I've heard about you, little boy. They said you were a part of Chaos, that you were one of His avatars."

"I AM Chaos. He's MY avatar! Tell him, Oscha!"

"SiRe . . ."

"The thing is, Earl Tyrant, you are NOT Chaos. You're a mistake that was kept alive through a lie. A fluke that Chaos has perpetuated for too long. Some in Heaven thought you were His son. Can you imagine? You, the son of the Son of God. I don't know if you're that or not, but I do know this: you're a blot on my master's name. One I intend to wipe out, now."

"How DARE you! I am CHAOS! CHAOS! You can't talk to CHAOS that way!"

"Jecht, remove Chaos and Oscha from the cell, and shut it behind you, please. I wish to have a moment alone with the boy."

"You want me to shut you In here with him?"

"Did I stutter?"

"Nope. You realize that your assigned task is over, though, right? If things go south for you, I'll just leave you here."

"Take them and shut the cell."

"LEAVE THEM HERE! I ORDER YOU TO LEAVE THEM HERE!"

The child's cries were in vain. Jecht withdrew, and took Chaos and Oscha with him. When the door to the cell was shut, and the child and I were alone in the darkness, I permitted myself to smile.

"But I AM Chaos!" He squealed, pounding on the chair with pudgy little fists.

"I know, Earl, I know you are Chaos."

"Then why are you leaving me in here! I command you to take me OUT of here!"

"Oh, no, no, no. Not after all I've done to get you alone. Feigning ignorance that you'd be here, and pretending that I didn't immediately know which of you was which. It's not as easy to pull a fast one on Jecht as you might think."

"But I'm CHAOS. You have to do what I say!"

"You're Chaos alright. Or rather, you're a part of Chaos. Specifically, you are everything that's wrong with Him. I believe in Chaos' cause, Earl. I believe Heaven has wronged us, and that God has cheated us of what is ours, and I believe Cosmos is the reason He oppresses us so. Chaos is going to lose this war, Earl, of that it is already clear. But I have a responsibility to ensure He does NOT lose the next war. To do that, I must make sure He is strong. And you, Earl Tyrant, are the problem."

"What do you mean? I'm CHAOS. I can't be a problem!"

"You are the problem, though, don't you see? You're dead, but you're still a child. You are Chaos' immaturity. You are even the innocence He has long since repressed. What if you still trust in the Old Man in Heaven? What if you actually DO love the Lady of Order? What if they're more important to you than winning? You're a chance I cannot take, Earl."

"But I'm Chaos! You have to take me, or He'll never be complete!"

"That's where you're wrong, Earl. Chaos would never be whole if I brought you near Him. You are the hole. The weakness. The gap. The moment of doubt. The immaturity. The proclivity for despair. The short temper. I'm sorry, Earl, but I can't afford to have you jeopardizing my revenge. I have come too far and worked for too long to ensure that Chaos is unstoppable in the Last War. I can't let you come between me and the power to bend Fate over and fuck her in the ass."

"What does that even mean?"

"It means, dear Earl, that there is a very special reason I had all witnesses removed from this room, which is dark, soundproof, escape proof, and very small. No one will ever know what I have done in this room, Earl. Not Chaos, not Cosmos, not God in Heaven. The only one who will ever know is the man who next finds himself in this room, and only because it will happen to him, too."

"What are you going to do?" the boy whispered, his voice quavering with fear.

"I'm going to practice. Don't worry, it won't hurt . . . _more than I want it to,"_ I whisper back, like a father to his son. I follow this by reaching out and ripping the boy's arm out of his socket.

"!"

"SCREAM! SCREAM YOU STUPID BASTARD! NO ONE CAN HEAR YOU! I'M THE ONLY ONE IN HERE, AND YOUR SCREAMS JUST MAKE ME HAPPIER!"

I shove one hand into the empty and bleeding socket as the boy tries to writhe away. He's weak though, terribly so. Chaos is stronger, and he's faint. As my hand bores its way through his flesh and nerves toward his organs, I reach my other hand out and begin running my fingers down his face, as if to soothe.

He shrieks again in pain, and I coo, "Oooooh, does it hurt? Don't worry. It'll all be over soon. Just another hour or so. Maybe a day or six at most. I think I'll unravel you nerve by nerve. Won't that be fun?"

"NO! STOPSTOPSTOPSTOP! ! I'LL BE A GOOD BOY!"

"SHUT _UP_ YOU STUPID BASTARD! OR I'LL FEED YOU YOUR OWN HAND! Actually, that sounds like a great idea! _Open wide!_"

I pull one hand from the gore, pinning him down with the other. I grab his disembodied arm as I break his jaw open. The hand fits his mouth perfectly, and the sputtering sound is music to my ears. He starts choking, though, and I'm forced to pull it out. Can't have him passing out yet.

"Do you know the best part of all this? You won't die, Earl. No matter what I do. Jecht's gone, and the Seraphim won't be here for Gods only know how long. I could just keep doing this sort of thing to you forever. Wouldn't that be nice?"

"WAAAAAHAAAAAAY? What did I ever do to you?"

"Don't you give me that! Look at you! One minute you're the high and mighty Chaos, and the next a crying little boy!" I rip one of his ears off to emphasize the point. "You destroyed WORLDS, kid. This is the least I can do for them. You were cruel, and you tortured thousands. They say I'm Hell's Messiah. Consider this your salvation."

"NAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGHHHCKKK!"

"Hey, I've always wondered what someone looked like without the top of their head. You don't mind if I take a look, do you? Didn't think so." I said, shoving his head against the wall with such speed and force that his skull cracked. I began to peel it off as he sobbed.

"I'll be a good boy! I'll be a good boy! Make it staaaaaaaahahahaawwwwp!"

"I can't do that, Earl. Don't entertain any hopes, either. Rest assured. You will die. Just as soon as I've finished making it brutal."

"WAAAAHAAAAY!"

"STOP ASKING THAT YOU LITTLE PUS BALL! You killed thousands, if not millions! This is the least I could do for them. There is no justice in Heaven and Hell. Not if people like Sephiroth and Kefka and the like are free and creatures like Dan Kring can even entertain dreams of power and shitballs like you can actually HAVE power. Not if good men are sent here and freaks like Barthandelus are elevated to near Godhood. Do you want to hear my version of Final Heaven?" I ask, ripping out one of his lungs, "I don't even remember it, heheheheHAHAHAHAHA! I guess I'm supposed to have some kind of higher motivation for this, but I'll be honest, I'm being uncharacteristically violent at the moment, and I really don't stand to gain that much from it."

"Does that mean you'll stop?"

"You know? I just might. I mean, I _thought_ this would be fun, but it really has lost some of its luster, come to think of it. I wonder if emotional torture is better than physical, then? I'm sorry, is this your arm?"

He just looked at me, and slowly the sanity came flooding back. "Oh GODS," I groaned, realizing what I had done. "Oh GODS. What have I become."

"Let me go and I won't tell anyone!"

"No! No! You're still going to die. But GODS, what am I doing? Torture? Is this who I am now?"

"Let me go!"

"I'm so sorry, Earl. So sorry. I-I truly am. You must believe me."

"I do! I do! I believe you!"

"Good. I can kill you in peace now."

"Wha-?"

Before he could finish, I had summoned one of my swords to finish him, causing the gore to slowly fade into the Void. And like that it was as though it had never happened. As I emerged from the cell and observed that my hands were clean, I could only question whether it ever truly had.

It is not a part of my story I relish, but it was a serious wake-up call. Chaos had given me His authority and a portion of His power. I began from that day onward to wonder whether it was truly worth it, and what effect it was having on me. Something was seriously wrong with me, but the speed at which things moved from that point onward did not ever allow me to properly examine it.


	22. Chapter 22 A Friendly Warning

_**LOCATION: CARDIAN ISLES, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: THREE DAYS PRIOR TO THE FOURTEENTH CYCLE**_

_**SITUATION: DRASTIC.**_

It is finished. World C has been silent for hours now. I can only assume that it's because Omega has finished her work of destruction. World D is gone now. The dreamers are in World C, their dreams nothing more than a terrible blackness. All that we did in World D is done now. The place where Final Heaven was conceived has ceased to be. The Gods and their tyranny are ended, as are the terrors of Hell and the rest that we had in Heaven.

It's difficult to take that all in. World D has been the stage for so much of this conflict. I am certain that there is more that happened there than I could possibly guess. All our conflicting ideas about Final Heaven were shaped there. Now we are in a more dire phase of the plan. Whose view of the idea Drogan Klauser and his comrades invented will come to pass?

Drogan wanted equality for all in Heaven, and envisioned a way that five men could achieve it. The Scholar took that vision and gathered six men with the purpose of destroying the Gods. Kramer guided Omega and her companions in the hopes of maintaining the Dream. What he aims for now, I cannot say. Marquez acted on his own, and I can only assume he has an idea of Final Heaven as well. My vision was to empower Chaos, that through Him we could obtain the power to mock Fate and gain the prize. What of the others, though? What if Kelgar, Xezat, Alexander, Galuf, Bartz and Gilgamesh all started their own schools? Shinryu claimed Gilgamesh was with Omega before the end.

How would Drogan react if he knew his drunken idea set all this into motion? Was that conversation that night the beginning of this all, or was it, like Shinryu and Cid claim, the act of someone even they cannot equal? And if so, why? What is it that lurks behind all these curtains and hopes to ensnare us?

By now World B must be slowly repopulating. The warriors chosen to fight the final battle are all gathering here, no doubt, to determine whose vision of Final Heaven is the best. Will it be mine? The Scholar's? The Chronicler's? Or someone else's? One way or another, all threads will tie themselves up here, and the final battle will rage with such intensity that even the Lord Dragon will turn his face away and say "Enough."

My return to Castle Chaos was also something of an ending. Jecht bid me farewell, and I made my way to one of the parapets where I was to meet with Golbez. I was rather anxious about the "revelation" he had promised. When I saw him, a towering black mass of metal and cloth, I could not help but worry. After all, I was still unsure what he and Aerith were up to, and that business with Vincent and Jecht had been equally worrisome. Nevertheless, I was desirous to know the truth, and the only way I'd get that was listening.

"I was beginning to think you would not come," he said, not turning to face me.

"You had something to tell me?"

"You have been very busy, since arriving in Hell. I wonder, in fact, how you found yourself here, at Castle Chaos in the first place."

"How does any man find himself in Hell?"

"Well put. You are here at the behest of the Highest, then?"

"I didn't say that."

"You did not need to. You are very wise, Doctor Cid, but you are not a God, and cannot hope to fool us all."

"You're no God, either."

"Indeed. But where you are alone and uninformed, I have been a very busy man, I and my allies."

"You mean the others here in the castle?"

"Do I mean that? Tell me something, Doctor Cid, what have you learned about the nature of this war since setting out to do Chaos' bidding for the Highest?"

"That Chaos was once wronged by Cid and Cosmos, and desires retribution and justice for that. The two fooled Him into this never-ending conflict, where He and Cosmos descend into Life and do battle."

"Is this what you have learned? Then you know nothing. The truth is far worse, Liar. Chaos and Cosmos do not wage war merely among the living, but also among the dead."

"Is this supposed to be a shock? Dissidiae aren't that uncommon."

"True, true, but this war between them is different from Dissidiae. You have heard what, that Cosmos has been winning? That these battles take place in Life's stream? You have been deceived, Mr. Liar. These wars do not take place in a world below the one in which we reside."

"So they happen here, then? Why is this a surprise?"

"No, no, no. They happen _above_ us."

"What, in Heaven?"  
>"No. Why do you think I came here when I was already in Heaven? I remember things that no one else remembers. My own brother, Cecil, does not remember what happened in our last battle. His best friend has no memory of it, either. Nevertheless I fought both of them for Chaos in the twelfth cycle."<p>

"You participated in the twelfth cycle?"

"We all did. Kefka, Sephiroth, Kuja, Ultimecia. All of us. You have been played, Liar. Chaos hasn't been using you to collect us. At least not we ten who fought last time."

"This is madness! What was the point of me running around Heaven then?"

"You don't know? It's simple, really. You've been forging covenants for Him. Chaos just wanted us to be more concretely tied to Him in the next battle, to make certain we played our parts in His plan. It wasn't until you told Him that we were all Chaos that He had a better idea. The links you've forged are now a chain, binding us to Chaos. Should He fall, any one of us could become Him next. It's brilliant, really, and He owes it all to you."

"But then, that means . . ."

"Chaos plans to lose this war, yes. And you've helped Him set things up perfectly for the fourteenth cycle. Chaos' own power is fueled by destruction. When He is destroyed, that power will be added to His own, despite His destruction. Thus, if Chaos is resurrected through us, His power increases exponentially, and if any one of us is destroyed, He gains that parts power and adds it to His own, as well. And all this is owed to you."

"Then we can rest assured of His victory. All our dreams will come true."

"You have been fooled, Liar, would you also be a fool now?"

"What does that mean?"

"Chaos cannot grant us all our wishes. Kuja's wish is to eliminate the entire universe, as is Ex-Death and the Cloud of Darkness', and perhaps Kefka's and Sephiroth's. Ultimecia wants to compact the universe, and Mateus wants to rule it. Do you begin to see how these things conflict? Oh, Chaos will grant our wishes, Liar, but at what cost? Can your mind conceptualize a universe that has been destroyed, compacted, and dominated simultaneously? This is only a fraction of what Chaos has promised. Either He grants them all at the cost of reality's integrity, or He has some other agenda altogether."

When he said that, I admit I was put-off. I wanted to say I didn't care if I got to live in a reality where the Scholar had been made to suffer, but since learning that everything in that world, and indeed in this one, was a lie, I have come to detest such an outcome. One false reality is no more acceptable than any other. I must have the truth. I must see World A and know if the Gods are there, waiting, or not. I must see Final Heaven!

"Your words are exactly this."

"Choose wisely who you believe, Liar. You are a deceiver, and have been deceived. This is a dangerous game we are all playing. One mistake and you may find yourself in the Void for all eternity."

"I thank you for your advice, Golbez. Now, if you don't mind, Chaos is waiting for me."

"Tread lightly in the dragon's lair, Doctor. Chaos is not aware that you know you have been deceived. Use that to your advantage, if you will."

Ah, what a fool I was! Or is it what a fool I am? I have spent all my time worrying about which school of Final Heaven will win out, but what of Golbez and Aerith? There is no denying that they've been up to something. But what? What is there beyond Final Heaven? We were experts on the lay of Heaven in Obsidian. We studied the structure and interactions between Heaven and Hell, and Final Heaven is what we came to. Chaos is abusing the Beauty and the Beast, that much Golbez made clear, but is that a viable strategy? Is there more to this?

I ignored all this and went to the throne of Chaos, where He sat attended by all His fiends. This time, I knelt in homage before the God of Discord, the Son of the Most High God. I believed in Him, even knowing He had played me for a fool.

"Liar, you have returned. You brought me back my avatars, my warriors, and have spread my Gospel throughout Hell, preaching good news to the murderers, the thieves, the rapists and the traitors. I trust you are pleased with yourself?"

"Lord Chaos," I said, raising my head to meet His gaze, "I am always pleased to serve the one God who yet cares for the angels and demons of Heaven and Hell. You who do not discriminate, but promise the desire of our hearts to any who would be faithful are a pleasure to serve. What is our next move, Lord Chaos?"

"Isn't that obvious, my friend? Now it is time for us to storm Cosmos' Castle."

"Why, Lord Chaos? The war is not to be fought there."

"We will make war on all fronts. While our warriors are fighting, all Heaven will tremble. I want all eyes turned on this war."

"But Cosmos' Castle, my Lord?"

"I am a lonely God. It has been too long since last I saw her."

"Cosmos, my Lord?"

"No, not Cosmos. Princess Sarah."


	23. Chapter 23 You've Already Seen This Part

_**OCCASION: TWO DAYS PRIOR TO CYCLE 014**_

_**LOCATION: CARDIAN ISLES.**_

The Palace of Order was a shining white structure that rose up not far from World D's Sacred Nebula, the capital of Heaven. On the far side of it was a replica of the Crescent Lake found here in World B, and on the near side a glorious rise of steps which a man could waste all day climbing.

By the time I had arrived at the Palace, Chaos' troops had already descended on it. Demons unleashed from every pit in Hell were swarming the place, and the Fiends were leading the assault. The majority of Chaos' best warriors had been sent inside with a very special concession made to me- they were to isolate the Scholar, and shepherd him to the balcony overlooking the lakefront.

Chaos had assumed the form of Garland, and gone off to find Cosmos, to confront Her. In the meantime, I was left to myself to wander the castle as the battle raged. Here and there seraphim were fighting demons, and I passed between them unmolested. None of them were entirely certain which side I was on.

I, myself, believed I was on Chaos' side, having completely forgotten my duty to Cid Lufaine. My allegiances, as it happened, were about to be altered in their entirety.

As I toured the ruins made by the ones I had released and bound to Chaos, I came upon a room that the Scholar and the rest of Obsidian had fled. It was an odd chamber, with Maenad-growth tubes all throughout. The tubes were full of crystal liquid, and suspended in them were the bodies of persons. On a plaque on the front of each tube was written the name of the occupant.

Eventually I came across one marked "Cidian Lief, Cid Prime." I ran a hand down it and looked at the man within, wondering who he was. According to the Scholar, this was the name of the very first Cid, but as I placed my hand more firmly on the glass, I became filled with a greater unease still.

Ultimately, I decided to press onward. The time had come at last. Chaos would tend to His wars, but my vengeance came now. The Scholar was waiting, and I could not disappoint him. I had to stop him, had to show him the price of his arrogance! At long, long last, relief would be mine.

I reached the balcony before he did, and paused to look out over the lake. At the time, I thought that the lake would be the place where the battle would happen. Golbez' words had yet to fall in place in my mind. I lost track of them altogether when I heard a door open behind me.

"Ah," I say, employing Chaos' power to remove the doorway when he's stepped out. "You've come."

"Not of my own wish. I have no interest in this fight," he said. Of course he wouldn't. The man was always brushing me off like nothing, even when we were allegedly friends. Why should I have any importance now that we weren't? But I wasn't prepared to let that remain the case. I reasoned I would _force_ him to fight me.

"Then indulge our old friend," I say, turning to face him, "Because I have wanted this for a very, very long time."

"So it would seem. The question is: _why?_ Why sell yourself to demons, jeopardize your everlasting soul, forfeit all just to fight me?"

He still didn't get it! Here was a man bent on fighting the Gods, and he couldn't see that that was what Chaos was after? Oh, it had to be all about HIM, didn't it? "You're so pompous!" I shouted, "So full of yourself! You think I did all of this _just to get at you?_ Don't be a fool, Previa. I joined Chaos because He's _right_. This, though," I say, gesturing at the area in general, to indicate the coming battle, "is something else."

"What? This is madness. That's all I see."

_Because you are blinded by your ambition,_ I thought. "Look at you, Cid. I spent my entire _life_ fighting things like you. Fallen angels that played at being Gods. Beings who strove to manipulate the lives of men. Yet you are worse than any Occuria ever was, for you play not with men's lives, but with their souls."

"I do only as the Gods ask. Make your point."

Was this the same man who had taught me Final Heaven, who had planned from the beginning to dethrone the Gods and make angels their equals? I could scarcely believe what I was hearing. To this day I don't quite understand what he meant.

"You claim to know enough about the art of war to wager men's souls and lives on it, but have you ever tasted battle, Previa? Do you even know the first thing about winning a fight?"

"Is that all this is, a test? I have no time for tests, Bunansa. I have a war to start."

"This is no tests," I say, summoning the swords Chaos' power and my hatred have given me, "This is a battle of wills, Previa." _Of doctrines,_ I longed to scream. _Of whose vision of Final Heaven,_ I should have said. "Our very own Dissidia. Your view versus mine. I wonder, now, after all the Dissidiae you have helped resolve over the ages, can you ever hope to resolve your own?"

Ready to start, I sent the swords flying at him. His face widened in surprise, and it's a moment I relish to this day. To surprise the Scholar; I wonder how many have had that privilege? He dove behind some seats placed for viewing the lake in an effort to avoid getting skewered.

I waited a moment for him to get up, then sent the blades flying at him again. He dodged, barely, and I began to laugh. I was high on the experience. Having the upper hand over him was exhilarating, and I couldn't get enough of it. Watching him run around like a fool was simply too much.

"Give up, Previa! You're not even armed! That you carry no sword is proof enough: you don't know the first **thing** about fighting a war! I am the better Cid! It's not fair that I was cast out, and you weren't! Do you hear me, Previa? IT'S NOT FAIR!"

I decided to teach him what unfair looked like, and sent the blades in a straight line. He was like a deer, petrified by an impending stampede of Chocobo, and I could swear he wet himself when the blades fanned out around him, barely sparing his life.

That's when he turned and bolted. He scrambled for the stairs to the roof, attempting to make an escape. Oh, how pathetic, that the mighty Scholar, whose plans would shake World D to its foundations, would flee before a man he felt was so inferior.

"Going somewhere, Previa?" I mocked, knowing how little he liked his name, "Only one of us is going to leave this balcony, Scholar."

"Fine," he retorted, "You stay here forever, then. I've got an afterlife to get on with."

"Jokes won't save you now, Master!" I channeled my fury, and, a moment later, delivered a swift kick to his ribcage. He'd been cut, and I'd teleported up to him. Chaos' power was truly marvelous! Everything I had hoped for and more was happening. The Scholar was at my feet, my swords pointed at him. At last I would be free of him.

"Come now, my old teacher," I jeer, raising the swords above him, "we've a long way to go before you are damned." The blades plunged down, but in the last moment, the Scholar grabbed my leg and pulled me under them.

Pain coursed through my body. It had been too long since I'd felt it. It was a refreshing and invigorating sensation, that, combined with my rage, made me feel more alive than I had been in centuries.

"One thing is clear," the Scholar said, brandishing one of my own swords, as I pulled another out of my stomach, "I am tired of running away, and I am tired of getting my ass kicked." He brought the sword to bear and said, "You want a fight, Liar? Come and get it."

My swords burst forth, and I teleported again. When I rematerialized, he rolled beneath the blades, causing them to nearly crash into me again. They yielded to my command, though, and I turned them swiftly on him.

A storm raged on that balcony. A clap of thunder was heard as my swords smacked into the one he had wrested from my grasp. It was symbolic, I suppose. Just as I had weaponized the pink-haired girl, the Scholar was the one to wield her in the end. Even so did he seek to turn my sword against me.

At the time, though, I didn't think anything of it. All I could see was his face, and all I could feel was the heat in my own, urging me to reach out and tear those damned eyes out. I kept thinking back to what I had done to the Earl Tyrant in the Prison at Sanity's Edge, and I couldn't help but want to do it again to him.

What I'd done in that cell sickened me. It horrifies me, to this day. But when Chaos' spirit was upon me, I could bear the idea. I wanted it, almost as much as a man wants release, or air, or food. The Scholar was my friend. When all Heaven reviled me for having served Venat, he did not judge. We had been comrades, brothers! He had showed me Final Heaven, and had introduced me to others who hated the Gods as I did.

But that was a long time ago in a world that was fake. All that friendship was as false as the world it had been formed in. All that's left is a vile bitter feeling and a deep sense of regret and longing. Even my hatred has begun to burn out. I'm tired. Tired of hating him. Tired of the hatred I fed Chaos. I want to see World A, and then, then I can rest.

"Would you like to know the reason I chose six swords?" I asked him, our swords locking together, "It's simple, really: Pollendina, Previa, Marquez, Kramer, Margrace and Bunansa are their names. Would you like to guess what they represent?" I beat the Scholar down, then drew my swords back in a shield around myself. "Is it any wonder that in some languages, the word Cid means sword, or that the name of the Highest is Cid as well?"

I grabbed the Kramer and charged at him. Our blades met, eyes locked, and then his arm gave way. I planted a kick on his chest, shoving him backward. I wasn't ready to kill him just yet.

"Here's an interesting observation, my friend. Did you know that every Cid who joins a choir gains a title? And you, in your arrogance, thought it was some trademark of yours! No, no, Scholar, have you never thought about it? The Highest is a Cid! The Scholar is a Cid! And you see no greater connection here?"

In truth, this is when I myself saw the connection. Suddenly it was all too convenient. I was a Cid. God was a Cid. Cid meant sword. The Scholar's grandson's name was Mid. My son's name was Mied. But God's son was called Chaos. There was more going on here than I had time to take in. Now, looking out over World B, I wonder how many other Cids had sons named Mid, and whether Cid Lufaine had once intended to name Chaos Mid.

Golbez' speech about the true nature of the war had fallen into place at last. The war we had planned, the Scholar and I, it wasn't the same war that Chaos and Cosmos were actually going to fight. It wasn't the same that the Warriors of Chaos remembered. There was something much, much bigger going on here, and I was only then realizing it.

"As I have said before," The Scholar shrugged, "I see nothing but madness here. I have not heard reason issued from your lips in ages."

"Then hear it now, Scholar! Chaos and Cosmos believe theirs is the greatest Endless Cycle! But I say to you: this is not the case! There stands one greater, still! The Cycle of Cids! We Cids are meant for greater things than the average man, Scholar! The God of the Gods of Gods is one of our number, and after this, one of us will be the lowest of all Cids! Forever we will march on, enslaved by our own greatness!"

Oh, what a fool I was! I thought the cycle was of Cids! How could I not have seen it then? This battle was never one for Cids. Only now do I realize it: This is the battle of _Mids._ This is not about Gods, it is about the Sons of God!

"Funny, I can't see what's so great about you."

"See?" I asked smugly, "You've been on the defensive this entire time. You don't know the first thing about battle. Your talents with a blade are depressing, my master."

"Cut me some slack, junior. If you'd like me to stop going easy on you . . ."

His arrogance amused me, and I threw back my head to laugh. The Scholar took advantage of the perceived opening, charging at me, stopped only when I crossed two blades in front of myself. It was a close call; I had become sloppy.

My swords fan out and attempt to bifurcate him, but he steps back in time to avoid the blow. He comes at me again, and I teleport out of the way, enjoying how often he falls for that trick.

"Very good, Previa!" I taunt, "Perhaps you're not as bad with a blade as I'd thought."

"Yet you remain as stupid as ever. You've read Sephiroth's docket-," In truth I never have. "are you so willing to repeat his mistakes?"

"I fail to see how I can. You are no Cloud Strife, Scholar. Your best weapon is a book and you're most well known for your white hair and garish red robes. A badass you are not."

"Granted, but a Knight-Class you never were, Liar. Nor much of a mage, according to your docket. How much longer do you think you can possibly maintain whatever power this is that you're stealing?"

My fury boiled over at his remark. What a pathetic man I was, to allow others to dominate my emotions so! But his withering remarks got under my skin in a way no one else ever had.

"STEALING!" I roared, my swords whirling about, "Again with your arrogance! No Cid could ever be _better_ than you, could he? So I must be stealing! This is my power! This is my hatred! This is me, destroying you!" My swords flew forward, and with them came a second set. _Secondus, Haze, Highwind, Fabool, Decimus, _and _Raines_ I called them. What he believed they were, I cannot say.

"It's high time we end this!" The swords surged at him, and he batted them away as best he could. They gathered behind him as I taunted, "Ready to give in? To admit defeat? Can you? Are you even capable of such a thing! I doubt it!"

My swords came to shield me, but it was too late. He'd rolled out of their way and run his sword through me, from my spine to my heart. My breath caught in my throat as I reached down for the metal leaping out of my chest.

"Doctor," he said, his voice strangely friendly, "What shall I tell your son? Your Mid? Do you remember the oath?"

Ah, the oath. That if one of us should fall, our knowledge be passed on to our sons. I remembered it, and choked out, "P-promise . . . the oath . . ."

"What do I tell your son?"

"Tell him . . ." in that moment I scanned my mind for something to say. Coming up with nothing, I did what, looking back, is the most selfless thing I ever have, saying, " . . . nothing. His father died a long time ago."

"Then you have nothing else to say?"

"Before I am damned for all eternity? No . . . . Ironic, isn't it? That I, of all Cids, should be speechless at a time like this . . . ."

"Farewell, Cidolfas Demen Bunansa."

"Farewell, Cid Previa."

The flames came up, licking at me from every angle. I wasn't worried. I assumed I'd be going to Hell. In fact, no one, not even Chaos, could predict where I would end up next. Oh, how I wish I had simply gone to Hell . . .


	24. Chapter 24 One Last Trip

_**LOCATION: CARDIAN ISLES, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: TWO DAYS REMAINING UNTIL CYCLE 14.**_

When I came to, I was lying on my back in a green field. Above me the sky was black, littered with stars. I sat up, and took stock of my surroundings. In the east was what appeared to be a castle, but it was yet far off. To the west was the sea, judging by the briny smell. Here and there a tree popped up, but on the whole, the field was flat, save it be for the rolling of the hills.

No, come to think of it, there was more there than that. I observed flowers. Flowers of every kind were blooming amongst the green grasses of that night-swept hill. Though it was dark, by the light of the moon I could still tell that the flowers came in all manner of colors. White, yellow, blue, red, pink, purple, orange, and one or two that were dark enough to be black. I had never before seen a place so idyllic.

There was a woman, standing not more than fifteen feet away from me. She had a light red hair, almost pink in the evening sky, and was dressed in a white robe trimmed with red, not unlike Cid Lufaine's. In her hair was a white tiara, with a red gem. Her eyes were blue, I think, and her skin nearly as pale as the robe she wore.

As she approached, I called out to her. My voice was hoarse, and all at once I became aware of the pain my body felt. My clothes were blackened, and rent here and there, as though from stab wounds. I certainly felt as though I had endured a number of cuts and gashes, but not a one could be found on my body.

"Who are you?" I asked her, not knowing what else to say.

She smiled at me, and said, "What does a name matter anymore? There's no one left to call me it."

I stared in reply. No one? Even now I do not know what that meant. I said, "I am here. My name is the Li-, the Do-, I am Cid."

"Cid? I have heard of a Cid. A man who built a machine that could soar through the sky, but that was a long time ago, in the tales my people tell to their children."

"I had a son, once. Do you have any children?"

"I have no children. The Gods took the man I loved away from me for one they loved more."

"Ha. Even here the Gods are monsters. I have spent a long time fighting them. Have you?"

"I can't fight the Gods. They're gone. They took the man I loved, then they took everyone else. I am alone here."

"What do you mean?"

"Until I met you, it has been a year and six months since last I saw any living soul. No animal, no person, no bird, no fish. I hunger, but do not faint for lack of food. I weep, and no one hears. The world is empty, save for me."

I got to my feet, feeling older and more broken than I had in ages. I found myself winded by the task alone. After regaining my composure, I noted that the girl had come to my side to help me up.

"What happened to you?" She asked.

"I'm not sure," I said. "Either I just lost a fight with my best friend, or I lost a fight with my son and his friends."

"What was your son's name?"

"Ffamran. Ffamran Mied of House Bunansa."

"Mid?" The girl asked, breathing in sharply.

"This is one pronunciation, yes."

"I'm sorry. I knew someone by that name once, that's all."

"And speaking of names, you have yet to give me yours."

"Which would you like? The records call me Luna, but that is only a name the Gods gave me to hide from the world what I did for it."

"Then I do not want that name."

"I could say my name is Elen, but that would only be because _She_ did not like names exceeding four characters."

"I assume She is a Goddess?"

"Yes. A cruel one. The one who stole from me he who I love for the sake of Her own. My parents named me Elena, and said it would be celebrated on all worlds." She gave a wry snort and said, "At this point, I wonder if I am the only one _left_ on these worlds."

"Elena? Is that your name, then? I like it. It has a certain beauty to it."

"There is another name," she said, looking away from me, "one which the Goddess mocked me with, before she left me here, alone."

"What name is that?"

"She called me . . . _Kidd._"

"Kid? What does that mean?"

"She said it was the name of the woman who loved the son of Cid."

My heart leapt to my throat when she said that. To her, the words were meaningless, but to me they were one of the final blows to my aspirations.

"The man you loved, what was his name?"

"E-excuse me?"

"What was his name! Don't you see, foolish woman! He was a son of Cid!"

"What, _the_ Cid?"

"The Cid, a Cid, what does that matter? A son of Cid was here! What was his name?"

"It was-," I could not hear the rest of her words. They were like static in my ears. The world seemed to shatter around me, my body heating again. A woman's voice seemed to be screaming in the back of my head as I struggled to hear the name of the man who had loved this woman.

"Fight her!" I roared, causing the girl to jump back in surprise. She could not see any change, though I felt as though the world was pulling me down. "The Goddess who took your world away! Fight her! Where I am from there is a woman, a woman who reminds me of you! I made a terrible mistake, and the Gods broke her on their knees! You must be stronger. Fight this Goddess who took everyone away from you! Be brave, and-,"

What I intended to say next, I no longer recall. The earth reached up and pulled me down, and I blacked out again. I faded into a deep sleep, and did not wake again for some time.

When next I came to, I was lying, burnt and broken, at the foot of Cid Lufaine's throne. In great pain, I pulled myself to my knees, to face the robed God of the Gods of Gods.

"There you are," He said, as though I had simply walked in unannounced.

"Here I am . . . ?" I asked, puzzled.

"You've disappointed me, Doctor. You abandoned Chaos before He ever fought Cosmos, and Chaos' warriors fought so much among each other that they lost."

I vaguely understood that that meant everything had gone according to Chaos' plan, and not at all according to Cid's. I was not sure what to say, though. The last I remembered of Heaven was the battle at Order's Palace. And now Cid was saying the war had already been fought?

"How long . . . ?"

"It has been awhile now, since Chaos lost. So long, in fact, that Vincent Valentine has named himself Chaos, and declared war on Heaven. Chaos' warriors are loose, and even now lay siege to the city. They want to enter here, and gain Absolute Virtue from me."

"You mean the power to change fate?"

"I mean power. The power. The source of all power in this dream. Absolute Virtue. It is both an object and a force. The right to act and influence all other things."

"What do you mean, this dream?"

"I'm waking up, Doctor. This reality was tied to my subconscious dream, and now that I'm waking up, it is fading."

"You mean to tell me that Heaven, Hell, and all our lives were just . . . your dream? I don't believe that! I am not your dream! My life was not your dream!"

"I see you still do not understand. An illustration is in order. _Behold._"

He waved an arm, and the entire chamber sprang to life. I beheld what I first thought was an ocean. Then, after my eyes adjusted to the light, I realized it was far too shallow. The white tiled floor was visible, even from the platform on which Cid's throne rested. And, lying beneath the water, were thousands of millions of billions of trillions of bodies. As far as the eye could see, bodies lay beneath the water. Bodies of men, and of beasts, of monsters and moogles. All the living beings one could imagine were there, lying beneath the endless, shallow ocean in a room that went on forever.

"This is World C," He explained. "The world of Slumber. Here the bodies of all who once lived in reality are kept, in a water that protects them as they sleep. The world outside that door," he gestured toward the entrance door I had once been dragged through, "is World D, the world of Dreams. It is a world maintained by my dream, and supported by the dreams of all living things. Above us is World B, the world I called the world of War. That is where the wars were once fought. The wars you and the Scholar were fooled into thinking you were planning are imitations of those wars.

"The thirteenth war should have ended them all. Chaos was defeated, Shinryu fled, and I and Cosmos weak to the point of fading. The warriors were leaving, and going home. Only they did not. Instead we all fell asleep, and our bodies were placed here. Our dreams made the world below, and for a time there was order and peace.

"But then unrest came. Cosmos, I believe, realized the truth of the dream, and yet chose to maintain it. For my sake, and the sake of my son. Chaos realized the truth, too, and it drove him deeper into despair and madness. He saw Her with the warrior, and saw that I left Him in Hell, and it ate at His soul.

"Shinryu remembered my betrayal, and our conflict became such as to stagnate the rest of Heaven and Hell. I left more and more of Heaven's control in Cosmos' hands as I wasted my time attempting to defeat Shinryu here. The burden proved too much for her, though.

"Heaven's stagnation lead to the insurrection of Dorgan Klauser. He and the Dawn Warriors attempted something they called "Final Heaven" as an attempt to put things back on course. Cosmos imposed Her order on them, and told Heaven that they had Ascended. In truth, She had assimilated them.

"But Final Heaven grew, and eventually drove the Scholar to madness. He obtained the Eye of Matoya, and it exposed the truth behind World D to him far sooner than to the rest of you. When Cosmos assimilated him as punishment for his having crossed the line, He must surely have received a confirmation of his beliefs- that all these things are false, that World D is a fabrication.

"That peace was the Fourteenth Cycle. Your conflict with him could be called the Fifteenth Cycle of War. The war fought by the warriors chosen by you and he is then the Sixteenth Cycle of War. That is the war which Chaos lost. And now we are in the Seventeenth cycle, where The Scholar's wrath is upon us all. Though all Heaven sees Chaos as the aggressor, they are ignorant of the truth. The Scholar found Omega, and fused Omega to the woman you broke. Even now She is coming to slay me. When She enters this room, World D will end forever. I will awaken, and the Eighteenth Cycle will begin, and with it, the beginning of Scenario 000."

"Scenario 000?"

"A hypothetical outcome to the wars, that Shinryu and I envisioned when they began. A war wherein Chaos has become too powerful for us, or something more powerful than us should enter the war. We thought it to be Chaos, then, but with Omega's arrival, I think differently."

I tried to reply, but as I did, my legs caught fire again, and my breath stuck in my throat. I clawed at it frantically, my lungs heaving with pressure, but to no avail.

"You're dead, Doctor. The Scholar defeated you with your own anger that day. You cannot hope to recover. This is your existence now. To fade in and out of reality is your curse. You have no mouth, and you long to scream."

And it was true. I had no mouth, though I longed to scream. I clawed at where my lips were supposed to be, before the flames engulfed me. The pain this time was not as it had been when at Cosmos' palace. Now it was so much realer. Not as real as the grass had been in the world full of flowers, but horrifically more real than anything I had felt in a long time. It burned at me with an intensity that was only equaled by the terrible pain I experienced as every inch of my being burned.

When my mind came to again, I was here, in World B. Before me lay a long dragon, covered in crystal scales. He had a mane of brilliant pink, and, like myself, was bleeding from many gashes along his body. Even more than my torture of Earl Tyrant, even more than my empowering Chaos, this is the moment I most regret upon reflection.

"You're hurt," I said, not knowing who he was, not remembering that I had lost my mouth.

_**I AM DYING,**_ He said, _**AND WHEN I DIE, ALL WILL DIE WITH ME.**_

"Are you the source of life, then?"

_**NO, FOOLISH MAN. I AM ITS LONE DEFENDER. I AM HE WHO FIGHTS OMEGA, AND SAVES ALL YOUR WORLDS FROM HER HUNGER.**_

"And without you, we all will die?"

_**YES. WHEN I HAVE FAILED TO DESTROY THE DESTROYER, WHO WILL STAND IN HER WAY?**_

"Then I will help you! Tell me, what must I do?"

_**FOOL. I AM SHINRYU. YOUR SOUL WOULD NOT FEED MINE FOR EVEN A MOMENT.**_

"No, bind yourself to me! I have the power, perhaps . . ."

_**COME TO THINK OF IT, YOU DO SMELL DIFFERENTLY. FIRST I MUST ASK YOU A QUESTION, THOUGH.**_

__"Ask Lord Dragon, and know that I will not let Omega destroy us! I will not let The Scholar's sin, my sin, end all of us!"

_**TELL ME,**_ He said, extending His claw for my hand, _**WHAT WOULD YOU DO FOR SALVATION? IF ONE MIGHTIER THAN ANY GOD PROMISED YOU SAFETY, WHAT WOULD YOU DO FOR HIM? WOULD YOU BIND HIS VERY SOUL TO YOURS? WOULD YOU COVENANT WITH THE LORD DRAGON TO SERVE AS THE BEAUTY TO HIS BEAST?**_

"I would!" I cried, fire snaking from my wrist to His claw, "I would!"

_**COME THEN, AND SHOW YOUR GREAT WILL.**_


	25. Chapter 25 The Goddess of Hope

_**LOCATION: CARDIAN ISLES, WORLD B.**_

_**OCCASION: 1 DAY BEFORE "14**__**th**__** CYCLE."**_

As you might have guessed, I covenanted with Shinryu, to be His aide and sustenance. Whether it is my covenant with Chaos and Cid that actually sustains Him, though, I cannot say. Through alliances I have now a share of three of the major powers in this final battle. If I still had ambition, I would seek alliance and a share of Omega's power. I could, if I reached out my hand, I could join any side in this battle I so desired.

But my ambition is dead. Every time I consider betraying them for gain, I remember the woman in the world of flowers, and the girl I sold to the Gods. I remember the ease with which the Scholar defeated me, and the terrible pain I now keep at bay only by binding myself to Shinryu. I am no longer a man, but a mat upon which men trod.

I am bothered, too, by the things that Elena said. Who is this Goddess she spoke of? Surely not Cosmos. Who, then? And what became of Elena, after I left her? Is she still stranded there, in that world of flowers? And if so, is that truly so bad a thing? And what did she mean by "Kidd"? What is this of a name for the woman who loved the Son of Cid? I have never before heard such things.

What did you get, Cid Previa? What became of you after you struck me down? Is all of this anguish really worth our ideals anymore? I cannot help but think that it is not. All this bother of ideologies, of hatred, of exclusion and wars, it shouldn't be. If only there were a God who loved us, and cared for us, and kept us all safe, that we could live free of these terrible pains we inflict upon ourselves.

If only there were a God, I should say. I cannot hope to believe that the creatures we called Gods in the worlds below truly are. But if they are, is there any point to reaching World A? Maybe we are better in World B, where at least we will always have hope. Or maybe Chaos is the God we need. His plan to rend reality might be the peace and love we deserve, if not the one we need or want.

I despair, now, of all hope. There is no God above the Gods we have known. World A is a desolate place, devoid of the brotherhood and freedom and love that Dorgan Klauser envisioned. And he was a man, weak and killable, and not fit to be our God. Our Gods are not fit to be our God.

Then let not Chaos be my God! Let not Cid Lufaine be my God! Let not Shinryu be my God! Let not Cosmos be my God! If there is no God worthy of us, then I reject and renounce all Gods! Come Omega, oh come! Come and wipe us all down! We are without hope, because there is no faith, and we have no faith because there is no God for us to believe in!

Come, then, Omega, and destroy us all! Be our Goddess of Hope, you beautiful destroyer! Annihilate us, and turn out the lights of the worlds when you leave! Put us out of our misery, and save us from ourselves with the only peace we can be sure will last!

We are sinners, in the hands of an angry Goddess! We are fools, burning our houses before the coming maelstrom! We judge others because of their beliefs, because of their skin, their gender, their homeland, their sex, and reject those who should be our friends! We hate, and lie, and steal, and cheat, and kill, and worse! We are monsters, and She is the hero!

Erase us, Omega, for we draw about ourselves a black outline, to separate our vibrant colors from those around us. We say that brown is real and mock the colorful. Wash us from all reality, Omega, and give us that which we so completely desire! If life is nothing but a battle and a struggle for dominance, put it to an end. If there is no hope, there is no reason to live! Take us from this pointless struggle, then, Omega. Sooner I would be engulfed by the Void's embrace than spend one more day fighting for what I know I will never achieve.

Omega, have mercy on our souls, for we have had no mercy on our selves.


End file.
